Diagnosis of Whipple’s disease is complicated, especially because symptoms are similar to other more common conditions that range from celiac disease to neurological disorders. Your doctor will try to rule out these other conditions before diagnosing you with Whipple’s disease. The first sign your doctor will look for to determine if you have Whipple’s disease is lesions. An endoscopy is the insertion of a small flexible tube down your throat to the small intestine. The tube has a mini camera attached. Your doctor will observe the condition of your intestinal walls. Thick walls with creamy, ragged covers are a potential sign of Whipple’s. During an endoscopy, your doctor may remove tissue from your intestinal walls to test for the presence of the T. whipplei bacteria. This procedure is called a biopsy and can confirm an infection. Polymerase chain reaction is a highly sensitive test that amplifies the DNA of the T. whipplei from your tissue samples. If the bacteria have been in your tissue, there will be DNA evidence of it. This test can confirm the existence of the T. whipplei bacteria in your tissue. Your doctor might order a complete blood count. This will help determine if you have a low count of red blood cells and low amounts of albumin, which are both signs of anemia. Anemia is an indication that you might have Whipple’s disease.
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