www.celiac.nih.gov
Celiac Disease News
Spring/Summer 2007 (PDF)
Contents
NIH Celiac Disease Awareness Campaign Celebrates First Anniversary
July 17 marks the first anniversary of the Celiac Disease Awareness Campaign, a national initiative launched by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to raise awareness about the disease among health care professionals and the public.
“As we begin the second year of the Awareness Campaign, we look forward to continuing our
efforts to spread the word about celiac disease,” said Stephen P. James, M.D., director of the
Division of Digestive Diseases and Nutrition at the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). “We want to increase awareness among health care professionals and the public about the prevalence of celiac disease, its disparate symptoms, and the availability of reliable tests to detect it.”
In the past year, the Awareness Campaign disseminated educational materials about celiac disease, published and mailed three issues of the e-newsletter Celiac Disease News, and received national media attention. Some highlights from the Awareness Campaign’s first year include
distributing 7,605 copies of the Celiac Disease fact sheet, 5,310 copies of What I need to know
about Celiac Disease, and 1,756 copies of the NIH Consensus Statement on Celiac Disease between July 17, 2006, and June 30, 2007
launching the Awareness Campaign website, www.celiac.nih.gov
being mentioned in major news outlets, including USA Today, The Washington Post, People, and PR Newswire
meeting with celiac disease stakeholder organizations
“Through the Awareness Campaign, we hope that even more health care professionals will recognize and diagnose celiac disease, resulting in earlier treatment and better outcomes for people with the disease,” James said.
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Celiac Disease Featured on “The View”
Celiac disease received national attention on the daytime television talk show “The View.” Peter Green, M.D., director of the Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University, and Alice Bast, executive director of the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness (NFCA), were interviewed about celiac disease by Elisabeth Hasselbeck, a host on the show who has the disease. If you missed the show, you can see the interview at the NFCA website at www.celiaccentral.org.
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Celiac Disease Awareness Campaign Update
Awareness Campaign Stakeholders Meet
The National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse convened a meeting of Celiac Disease Awareness Campaign stakeholder organizations on May 18 in Bethesda, MD. Organization representatives received an update on the Awareness Campaign’s first-year activities and shared information about their organizations’ celiac disease initiatives during the past year. Thank you to all of the groups that participated and provided their insight and suggestions for future Awareness Campaign activities.
New Website Features
The Awareness Campaign recently added materials and features to its website, www.celiac.nih.gov, including
a slide presentation by Stephen P. James, M.D., director of the Division of Digestive Diseases
and Nutrition at the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). Dr. James addressed scientists, health care professionals, and people with celiac disease at the International Celiac Disease Symposium in New York City last fall. To view the presentation, go to www.celiac.nih.gov/News.aspx.
a feature article about traveling with celiac disease, which includes tips to ensure a
healthy and safe vacation when you are eating away from home. To read the article, visit
www.celiac.nih.gov/PracticeTools.aspx.
an updated, gluten-free diet chart that depicts the most recent recommendations from the
American Dietetic Association. To view or download the chart, go to www.celiac.nih.gov/PracticeTools.aspx.
the World Gastroenterology Organisation practice guideline on celiac disease available at
www.celiac.nih.gov/PracticeTools.aspx.
the American Gastroenterology Association Institute’s “Medical Position Statement on the Diagnosis and Management of Celiac Disease,” based on a comprehensive review of available scientific literature. The statement is available at www.celiac.nih.gov/PracticeTools.aspx.
Awareness Campaign materials are not copyrighted and can be copied and shared without permission with patients who are gluten intolerant. Please credit the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Celiac Disease Awareness Campaign as the source.
Other resources available on the website include the
You can read or download copies of these publications at www.celiac.nih.gov/Materials.aspx.
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Rodgers Named NIDDK Director
National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Elias A. Zerhouni, M.D., announced the appointment of Griffin P. Rodgers, M.D., as director of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) effective April 1, 2007.
Rodgers, who was appointed deputy director of the NIDDK in January 2001, has been the Institute’s
acting director. Rodgers also has served as chief of the NIDDK’s Clinical and Molecular Hematology Branch since 1998.
As NIDDK director, Rodgers oversees an annual budget of $1.8 billion and a staff of 650 scientists,
physician-scientists, and administrators. The Institute conducts and supports research on many of the most serious health issues affecting the public, including diabetes, endocrinology, and metabolic diseases; digestive diseases and nutrition, including obesity; and kidney, urologic, and hematologic diseases.
“Griff Rodgers is an outstanding physician scientist and molecular hematologist,” said Zerhouni. “He has made singular contributions to the study of globin disorders and is internationally recognized for his contributions to the development of effective therapy for sickle cell disease and other genetic diseases of hemoglobin. In addition to his research experience, Dr. Rodgers is a dedicated and knowledgeable clinician and a first-rate research administrator. He has all the qualities we seek in an Institute director.”
Rodgers received his undergraduate, graduate, and medical degrees from Brown University. He completed his residency and chief residency in internal medicine at Barnes Hospital and the Washington University School of Medicine. His fellowship training in hematology/oncology was in a joint NIH program with
George Washington University and the Washington DC Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
In addition to his medical and research training, Rodgers earned a master’s degree in business administration, with a focus on the business of medicine, from the Johns Hopkins University in 2005.
As a research investigator, Rodgers is widely recognized for his contributions to the development
of the first effective—and now U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved—therapy for sickle cell disease. He was a principal investigator in clinical trials to develop therapy for patients with sickle cell disease and also performed basic research that focused on understanding the molecular basis of how certain drugs induce gamma-globin gene expression. He was honored for his research with numerous awards, including the 1998 Richard and Hinda Rosenthal Foundation Award, the 2000 Arthur S. Fleming Award, the Legacy of Leadership Award in 2002, and a Mastership from the American College of Physicians in 2005.
“It is truly an honor to be given the opportunity to lead an organization with a mission as far reaching and varied as the NIDDK’s,” said Rodgers. “While the NIDDK has a long and distinguished history of accomplishment as an Institute, we must look to the future to capitalize on the opportunities for disease prevention that new technologies and discoveries are giving us. The health problems we face as a nation are real and the results of research offer substantive promise for solving the difficult questions faced by millions of Americans every day and the health professionals who treat them.”
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Featured in the NIDDK Reference Collection
The Essential Gluten-Free Restaurant Guide
This book, in its second edition, includes a listing by state of gluten-free restaurants, offers tips
on how to get a gluten-free meal anywhere, and lists gluten-free menu items by the restaurants that serve them. The new edition includes 600 new celiac-friendly restaurants and notes about restaurant accommodations, meals served, price ranges, and other important information. For more information about the book and how to order it, visit www.triumphdining.com, or call 609–564–0445.
The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) Reference Collection
is a free, online, searchable database that helps health care professionals, health educators, patients, and the general public find educational materials not typically referenced in most databases. To see what other resources about celiac disease are available from the Reference Collection, please visit www.celiac.nih.gov/References.aspx.
Guidelines and Goodies: Eating Gluten-Free and Enjoying It
This brochure helps people who are newly diagnosed with gluten intolerance, celiac disease, or dermatitis herpetiformis understand the dietary requirements and changes necessary for following a gluten-free diet, with an overall emphasis on healthy and nutritious food. Topics include allowable grains and other foods, the basics of a nutritious meal plan, suggestions for dietary fiber and fats, the role
of exercise, incorporating gluten-free grains into menus, creating tasty gluten-free desserts,
how to eat gluten-free in restaurants, and how to cope with the first few days of being glutenfree.
The brochure is printed with colorful graphics and written in plain language. To order a free copy, contact Columbia University Medical Center, Harkness Pavilion, 180 Fort Washington Avenue, Suite 934, New York, NY 10032, celiac@columbia.edu.
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Celiac Disease in the News
Awareness Campaign Media Mentions
The Awareness Campaign website was included in “No Wheat, No Worries,” an article about celiac disease included in the June 11 issue of People magazine. The website also was mentioned in a May 2007 Washington Post advertising supplement entitled “Digestive Insight.” The supplement, which was published during Digestive Disease Week held in Washington, DC, May 19 to 23, featured an article about celiac disease that also cited the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse’s fact sheet about celiac disease, http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/celiac/index.htm, the American Celiac Disease Alliance, www.americanceliac.org, and the University of Maryland Center for Celiac Research, www.celiaccenter.org.
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Upcoming Meetings, Workshops, and Conferences
Awareness Campaign Exhibits
The Awareness Campaign had an exhibit booth at Digestive Disease Week in Washington, DC, from May 19 to 23, the American Academy of Physician Assistants Annual Conference in Philadelphia from May 26 to 31, and the 2007 Gluten Intolerance Group National Education Conference in Richmond, VA, from June 7 to 9. Bookmarks, promotional flyers, and educational materials were distributed.
The Awareness Campaign will be exhibiting at additional 2007 conferences including
Please stop by the booth if you attend the conferences.
Celiac Disease News
Celiac Disease News, an email newsletter, is sent to subscribers four times a year by the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse (NDDIC). The newsletter features news about celiac disease, special events, patient and professional meetings, and new publications available from the NDDIC and other organizations.
If you would like to subscribe, send an email to niddk@info.niddk.nih.gov. Please visit www.celiac.nih.gov/News.aspx to read or download a PDF version of the newsletter.
To meet the need for comprehensive and current information about celiac disease, the National
Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse, a service of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), launched the Celiac Disease Awareness Campaign. The Awareness Campaign is the result of the combined ideas and efforts of the professional and voluntary organizations that focus on celiac disease, along with the NIDDK, the National Institutes of Health, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Visit www.celiac.nih.gov to learn more about the Awareness Campaign.
Executive Editor: Stephen P. James, M.D.
Stephen P. James, M.D., is the director of the Division of Digestive Diseases and Nutrition within
the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). As director, Dr. James
oversees planning, implementation, and evaluation of a national research effort focused on gastrointestinal, pancreatic, hepatobiliary, and nutrition diseases and conditions. Before joining the NIDDK in 2001, Dr. James directed the division of gastroenterology at the University of Maryland’s School of Medicine for 10 years.
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