celiac disease: from adherence to gluten-free diet to health-related quality of life

Background: celiac disease (cd) is a genetic and immune-mediated disorder in which eating gluten reduces intestinal absorption and damages the mucosa and villi of the small intestine. this study was designed to investigate adherence to a gluten-free diet (gfd) and health-related quality of life (qol). methods: this cross-sectional study was conducted on 122 patients with cd in qom in 2023. sampling was performed in an easy and accessible way from celiac patients. the research tool was a researcher-made questionnaire. the obtained data were analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistical tests using spss 23. results: the average age of the patients was 37.57±9.59 years, and 93% had a gfd. gastrointestinal symptoms demonstrated a positive and significant correlation with gfd, age, marital status, and qol (p<0.001). the percentage of patients' qol scores (39.57%) was lower than the average. adherence to a gfd could predict favorable changes in patients' qol (β=0.71, p<0.001), and cd predicted gastrointestinal symptoms (β=0.64, p<0.001). the study model showed a good fit based on two important indicators of good model fit (χ2 /pdf=2.14 and rmsea=0.069). conclusion: the results revealed that better adherence to the gfd leads to a better clinical response and a decrease in gastrointestinal symptoms, thereby improving the qol of celiac patients.