Adult celiac disease presented with celiac crisis: severe diarrhea, hypokalemia, and acidosis

An acute severe onset of celiac disease is very uncommon in adults. We describe a patient with adult celiac disease who presented with acute diarrhea that lead rapidly to a life threatening hypokalemia and acidosis, the so-called celiac crisis. Celiac crisis, described mainly in children younger than two years of age, has become very rare due to earlier diagnosis and effective therapy of the disease. The case described is an example of the heterogeneous clinical course of celiac disease and emphasizes the need to consider it in the differential diagnosis, even in adults suffering from acute diarrhea and acidosis.