Background: Adults with longstanding coeliac disease generally report reduced quality of life. Uncertainty remains whether this is a sign of depression, thought to be a feature of the disorder.
Aim: To assess the psychological well-being in adults with long-treated coeliac disease.
Patients and methods: Fifty-one coeliac disease adults (59% women) aged 45-64 years diagnosed in 1984-1988 and showing evidence of remission 8-12 years later were examined by the Psychological General Well-being index. One hundred and eighty-two (57% women) adults of same age served as population controls.
Results: The coeliac disease patients showed no more signs of anxiety, depressed mood or distress than the controls as assessed by the Psychological General Well-being index, 103 (95% confidence interval (95% CI)=99-107) versus 103 (95% CI=100-106). However, unlike controls, the coeliac disease women showed a significantly lower Psychological General Well-being index than the coeliac disease men, 97 (95% CI=91-103) versus 111 (95% CI=106-117) (P<0.003).
Conclusion: Long-treated adult coeliac disease patients showed no difference in psychological well-being to population controls, suggesting that signs of depressed mood is no feature of well-treated coeliac disease. The observation that coeliac disease women living in Sweden experience poorer outcome of treatment than coeliac disease men is a cause of concern and calls for further studies.