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What symptoms are associated with thiamine deficiency in beriberi?
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nutritional disease
Children with rickets. The disease, which most commonly strikes children, causes bone deformities such as bowlegs. Rickets is caused by a lack of vitamin D or calcium.
Beriberi is a nutritional disorder caused by a deficiency of thiamin (vitamin B1). General symptoms include loss of appetite, lassitude, digestive irregularities, and a feeling of numbness and weakness in the limbs.1
Symptoms vary based on the specific form of the disease:
- Dry beriberi: Characterized by a gradual degeneration of the long nerves, starting in the legs and progressing to the arms. Symptoms include muscle atrophy, loss of reflexes, muscle weakness, painful calf muscles, poor coordination, tingling, paralysis, and mental confusion.12
- Wet beriberi: An acute form involving edema (fluid retention) resulting from cardiac failure and poor circulation. It may also lead to an enlarged heart and heart failure.12
In infants, the condition can lead to rapidly progressive heart failure. While neurological symptoms often show a gradual response to thiamin treatment, cardiac symptoms typically respond promptly. In the developed world, thiamin deficiency is frequently associated with chronic alcoholism, which may manifest as Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome, involving eye movement disorders, memory loss, and cerebellar incoordination.123