Beriberi

Beriberi Classification and external resources
Thiamine
ICD-10	E51.1
ICD-9	265.0
DiseasesDB	14107
eMedicine	ped/229  med/221
MeSH	D001602

Beriberi is a disease caused by thiamine (vitamin B₁) deficiency. It affects a variety of organs and systems of the body, including the nervous system, digestive system, heart, and muscles. It is not common in developed nations, but is associated with alcoholism and gastroinstinal disorders. It is endemic, and rates can be quite high, in a number of developing nations, including areas of Asia where people subsist on polished rice, in which the outer husk is removed. (Chamberllin and Narins 2005).

Overview

Thiamine is

its symptoms include weight loss, emotional disturbances, impaired sensory perception (Wernicke's encephalopathy), weakness and pain in the limbs, and periods of irregular heart rate. Edema (swelling of bodily tissues) is common. In advanced cases, the disease may cause heart failure and death. The origin of the word is from a Sinhalese phrase meaning "I cannot, I cannot".

Causes

Beriberi is caused by a lack of thiamine. It is common in people whose diet consists mainly of polished white rice (which contains little or no thiamine because the husk, which contains most of the thiamine, has been removed) and in chronic alcoholics with impaired liver function; it is also a known (though rare) potential side effect of gastric bypass surgery. If a baby consumes the milk of a mother who suffers from thiamine deficiency, the child may develop beriberi.

The disease has been seen traditionally in people in Asian countries (especially in the 19th century and before), due to those countries' reliance on white rice as a staple food.

Symptoms and effects

There are two forms of the disease: wet beriberi and dry beriberi.

Wet beriberi affects the heart; it is sometimes fatal, as it causes a combination of heart failure and weakening of the capillary walls, which causes the peripheral tissues to become waterlogged. Dry beriberi causes wasting and partial paralysis resulting from damaged peripheral nerves. It is also referred to as endemic neuritis.

Treatment

Treatment is with thiamine hydrochloride, either in tablet form or injection. A rapid and dramatic recovery within hours can be made when this is administered to patients with beriberi, and their health can be transformed within an hour of administration of the treatment. Thiamine occurs naturally in unrefined cereals and fresh foods, particularly fresh meat, legumes, green vegetables, fruit, and milk.

References

ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

• Chamberlin, Stacey L., and Brigham Narins. 2005. The Gale encyclopedia of neurological disorders. Detroit: Thomson Gale. ISBN 078769150X.

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