Background: The clinical presentation of coeliac disease (CD) is various and may influence
disease course. We aimed to investigate the associations of clinical presentation
with comorbidities and disease complications in a cohort of Hungarian coeliac patients.
Methods: In this retrospective study, data of consecutive CD patients were analysed.
Clinical presentation (classical vs. non-classical), extraintestinal manifestations
and comorbidities (anaemia, metabolic bone disease, dermatitis herpetiformis, IgA
deficiency, chromosomal abnormalities, autoimmune diseases and malignancy) were assessed.
Student’s t-test (for age at diagnosis) and the Chi-squared test or Fisher’s exact
test (for categorical variables) were applied as analyses. Results: A total of 738
patients were included. In classical vs. non-classical comparisons, classical presentation
was significantly associated with metabolic bone disease (59 vs. 36%, respectively,
p < 0.001), anaemia (47 vs. 38%, respectively, p = 0.027) and malignancy (6 vs. 2%,
respectively, p = 0.006); however, autoimmune diseases and dermatitis herpetiformis
were more common with non-classical presentation (23 vs. 31%, p = 0.02, and 5 vs.
16%, p = 0.014, respectively). Conclusions: Our findings confirm that clinical presentation
is associated with certain comorbidities and complications in CD. More personalised
follow-up may be recommended based on clinical presentation.
