CASE REPORT

A case of cough, lymphocytic bronchoalveolitis and coeliac disease with improvement following a gluten free diet

C E Brightling¹, F A Symon¹, S S Birring¹, A J Wardlaw¹, R Robinson², I D Pavord¹

¹ Institute for Lung Health, Department of Respiratory Medicine and Thoracic Surgery, University Hospitals of Leicester, Leicester LE3 9QP, UK
² Department of Integrated Medicine, University Hospitals of Leicester

Correspondence to:
Correspondence to:
Dr C E Brightling, University Hospitals of Leicester, Groby Road, Leicester LE3 9QP, UK;
chris.brightling{at}uhl-tr.nhs.uk

Chronic cough is a common reason for presentation to a respiratory clinic. In up to 20% of cases the cause remains unclear after investigations. We report one such case where there was bronchoscopic evidence of lymphocytic airway inflammation in association with newly diagnosed coeliac disease. All features improved markedly on a gluten free diet, suggesting a causal relationship between coeliac disease, cough, and lymphocytic bronchoalveolitis.

Keywords: cough; coeliac disease; lymphocytic bronchoalveolitis; gluten free diet

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Morice, A H, McGarvey, L, Pavord, I, on behalf of the British Thoracic Society Cough Gu, (2006). Recommendations for the management of cough in adults. Thorax 61: i1-i24 [Full Text]  
• Prakash, U. B.S. (2006). Uncommon Causes of Cough: ACCP Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines. Chest 129: 206S-219S [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Birring, S S, Patel, R B, Parker, D, Mckenna, S, Hargadon, B, Monteiro, W R, Falconer Smith, J F, Pavord, I D (2005). Airway function and markers of airway inflammation in patients with treated hypothyroidism. Thorax 60: 249-253 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Birring, S S, Brightling, C E, Symon, F A, Barlow, S G, Wardlaw, A J, Pavord, I D (2003). Idiopathic chronic cough: association with organ specific autoimmune disease and bronchoalveolar lymphocytosis. Thorax 58: 1066-1070 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Birring, S S, Morgan, A J, Prudon, B, McKeever, T M, Lewis, S A, Falconer Smith, J F, Robinson, R J, Britton, J R, Pavord, I D (2003). Respiratory symptoms in patients with treated hypothyroidism and inflammatory bowel disease. Thorax 58: 533-536 [Abstract] [Full Text]