Glossary of Terms
acidosis - a pathological condition resulting from accumulation of acid or a loss of base in the body; characterized by an increase in hydrogen ion concentration [decrease in pH]. Has various causes including several states that produce excesses in various acids; included are diabetes mellitus [keotone bodies], renal insufficiency [phosphorus, sulfuric and hydrochloric acids], respiratory disease [carbonic acid], and prolonged strenuous exercise [lactic acid]. Source: Dorland's Medical Dictionary.
amino acids - [organic acids]; most texts list 25 amino acids as having been established as constituents of protein. Amino acids can be obtained by hydrolysis of a protein or they can be synthesized in various ways--most commonly by fermentation of glucose. The essential amino acids are those that be synthesized by the body and are necessary for survival. The essential amino acids include the following: isoleuchine, phenylalanine, leucine, lycine, methionine, threonine, tryptophan, and valine. The nonessential amino acids which include alanine, glycine, [and about a dozen others] can be synthesized by the body in adequate quantities. All of the essential and most of the nonessential amino acids have one or more asymmetric carbon atoms and are optimally active. Various combinations of amino acids from proteins, which are highly complex molecules are present in all living things. Amino acids are referenced as hydrolysis products of proteins. With the prefix [amino-], it indicates the presence in a compound of the group--NH sub 2. The use of amino acids as a fortification in foods with a protein is forbidden by FDA regulations; however, selected amino acids are available in pill formations with varying representations for their use.
anemia - a reduction below normal in the number of erythrocytes per cu mm, the quantity of hemoglobin, or the volume of packed red cells per 100 ml blood which occurs when the equilibrium between blood loss and blood production is disturbed. Source: Dorland's Medical Dictionary. Symptoms may include some of none of the following: pallor of the skin and mucous membranes, shortness of breath, palpitations of the heart, soft systolic murmurs, lethargy, and fatigability may be manifested.
antibodies -substances made by the immune system that recognize and combine with foreign materials [antigens] that have gotten into the body. Antibodies are one part of the body's natural defense against invasion by germs and other potentially harmful substances.
antigens - a substance [usually a protein and not a carbohydrate or a fat], that is foreign to the body and triggers a reaction through the immune system that destroys or eliminates that substance. Antigens may be living things such as bacteria or molds; or, they can be products of living things such as poisons, animal hairs, pollens, or foods.
aphtous ulcerations - in the singular, a minute ulcer on a mucous membrane, often covered by a gray or white exudate; in the plural, an affection characterized lby small white spots associated with small ulceratons on the mucous membrane of the mouth. Source: Stedman's Medical Dictionary.
ataxia - failure of muscular coordination; irregularity of muscular action; is typically in differing and in different patterns for each patient when if occurs; centers on the execution of voluntary movements.
autoimmune - the production in an organism of reactivity to its own tissues, with the appearance of certain clinical and laboratory manifestations as a result of the altered immunologic response; one's own tissues are subject to the deleterious effects of the immunologic system. Sources: Stedman's and Dorland's Medical Dictionaries.
celiac sprue - a disease in which there is 1] malabsorption of nutrients by that portion of the small intestine which is damaged, 2] a characteristic although not specific lesion of small intestine mocosa, 3] prompt clinical improvement following withdrawal of certain cereal grains from the diet. Source: Gastroeintestinal Disease, Sleisinger and Fortran. Celiac sprue is also referenced as celiac disease, gluten-sensitive enteropathy, nontropical sprue, ideopathic steatorrhea, malabsorption syndrome, celiac syndrome, intestinal infantilism, celiac affection, the celiac condition, Gee-Herter's disease. In actuality, the disease has the same clinical features, etiology, pathology and response to treatment in both children and in adults.
biopsy- a small piece of tissue, such as from the inside of the intestine, that has been removed to look for symptoms of celiac disease of for other problems.
carbohydrate - a term for sugars and starches that are used by the body mainly as a source of energy;
Crohn's disease - typically referenced as regional ileitis; involves any part of the alimentary canal from the mouth to the anus and is often associated with symptoms and interactions with/for other areas; common manifestations include the following: abdominal pain and diarrhea; intestinal fistulization and obstruction or both; various affects for the ileum, colon, and/or perianal region; often there is crypt injury in the intestine and/or crypt abscesses consisting of polymophonuclear cells. Crypt lesions in ulcerative colitis are nearly identical, however, there is a differing distribution for Crohn's. The loss of energy and malaise may contribute more to overall functional disability and dysfunction than does any of the bowel-related symptoms.
Crosby capsule - an attachment to the end of a flexible tube, used for peroral biopsy of the small intestine, by which a piece of mucosa is sucked into an opening in the capsule and cut off. Source: Stedman's Medical Dictionary.
dysphasia - [dysphrasia] lack of coordination of speech, and failure to arrange words in an understandable way; related to cortical damage; Source: Stedman's Medical Dictionary.
edema - an accumulation of an excessive amount of watery fluid in cells, tissue or serous cavities. Source: Stedman's Medical Dictionary.
endoscope - a flexible tube that can be passed through the mouth into the stomach, out through the duodenum and on into the small and large intestine. It is used to obtain biopsies to look for symptoms of celiac disease and other disorders.
enteropathy - any disease of the intestine; gluten-sensitive enteropathy is referenced as celiac sprue. Source: Stedman's Medical Dictionary.
gliadin - the name of the protein found in wheat gluten; in persons with celiac disease, gliadin and similar proteins in rye, barley, and oats work as antigens. The body works against these antigens in a toxic kind of reaction which damages the mucosa [lining] of the intestine.
hepatomegaly - [megalohepatia] enlargement of the liver; Source: Stedman's Medical Dictionary.
hypoproteinemia - abnormally small amounts of total protein in the circulating blood plasma. Source: Stedman's Medical Dictionary.
hypotension - subnormal arterial blood pressure; Source: Stedman's Medical Dictonary.
hypothyroidism - diminished production of thyroid hormone, leading to thyroid insufficiency; Source: Stedman's Medical Dictionary.
immune system - The defense system of the body against foreign substances that include antibodies, cells making antibodies, lymph glands, and white blood cells.
inflammation - a damaging action against the body that can result from an attack by foreign substances [antigens]. Inflammation continues until the foreign substance is destroyed or removed by the immune system.
jejunum - the portion of small intestine, about 8 feet in length, between the duodenum and the ileum; Source: Stedman's Medical Dictionary. [the biopsy for celiac patients is typically referenced as the jejunum biopsy].
lupus - a multisystem disease with numerous and varying symptoms; generally characterized by immunologic abnormalities and the production of autoantibodies associated with tissue damage; gastroenterologic symptoms are common in patients with active Lupus. Nausea, anorexia or vomiting affects about 50 percent of Lupus patients; there may be asophageal dysmotility which results in heartburn, dysphagia and diarrhea.
malabsorption - refers to the defective mucosal absorption of nutrients; [not to be confused with maldigestion which denotes impaired nutrient hydrolysis]. The normally integrated processes of digestion and absorption can be simplified into three phases: first, a luminal phase, in which dietary fats, proteins and carbohydrates are hydrolyzed [solubilized], largely by pancreatic and bilary secretions; second, a mucosal phase, in which terminal hydrolysis of carohydrate and peptides occurs and fats are processed and packaged for export; finally, removal phase, in which absorbed nutrients enter the vascular or lymphatic ciruclations. Source: Gastrooeintestinal Disease, Sleisinger and Fortran. Because a central expression of celiac disease centers on the malabsorption of nutrients, the condition is often referenced as a malabsorption syndrome. [malabsorption causes food to be lost in stools, usually resulting in diarrhea].
mucosa - The inside lining of the intestinal tract that absorbs food into the body.
lamina propria - the layer of connective tissue underlying the epithelium of a mucous membrane; Source: Stedman's Medical Dictionary.
lymphocyte - a white blood cell formed in lymphoid tissue throughout the body, e.g., lymph nodes, spleen, thymus, tonsils, Peyer's patches, and sometimes in bone marrow; Source: Stedman's Medical Distionary.
osteomalacia - a condition marked by softening of the bones; the patient typically experiences pain, tenderness, muscular weakness, anorexia, and loss of weight resulting from deficiency of vitamin D or of calcium and phosphosphorus; typically referred to as a dysfunction of ostoid tissue of bone. Source: Dorland's Medical Dictionary.
osteoporosis - abnormal rarefaction of bone due to failure of the ostoblasts to down bone matrix; results in bone trabecula that are scant, thin, and without osteolastic resorption; commonly referenced as bone softness. Source: Dorland's Medical Dictionary.
prolamine - alcohol-soluble protein; protein insoluble in water or a neutral salt solution; soluble in dilute acids or alkalies, and in dilute [7 to 90%] alcohol; e.g., gliadin of wheat, hordein of barley, zein of corn. Source: Stedman's Medical Dictionary.
tetany - a syndrome manifested by sharp flexion of the wrist and ankle joints, muscle twitchings, cramps, and convulsions, sometimes with attacks of stridor [sounds as if rubbing or grating on a saw or blackboard]. The condition is due abnormal calcium metabolism and occurs in parathyroid hypofunction, vitamin D deficiency, alkalosis, and as a result of the ingestion of alkaline salts. Source: Dorland's Medical Dictionary. [is often a part of a malabsorption syndrome such as is represented in celiac disease].
ulcerative colitis - of or pertaining to ulcerations of the intestine; a tender colon may be the only abnormal sign to the patient; the typical symptoms include diarrhea, rectal bleeding, the passing of mucous and there may be moderate to severe abdominal pain. Patients with mild or even moderately severe disease exhibit few abnormal physical signs. They usually are well-nourished, not anemic and show no signs of having a chronic illness.
villus [plural is villi] - The "finger-like" [shag carpet-like] pattern of the intestinal mucosa that is required for the absorption of food. With the toxicity reaction to gliadin, the villus flatten, become mal-shaped, and drop off--thus causing a major reduction and change in the normal pattern for the absorption of nutrients into the body. [more commonly referred to as villus atrophy]. It is the damage [the inflammation] to the intestinal mucosa in which the villi are affected. Villus atrophy occurs in people with celiac disease when they consume foods containing an offending gliadin fraction.
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