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Query: UMLS:C0036474 (scurvy)
 685 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

It has been suggested that early features of scurvy (fatigue and weakness) may be attributed to carnitine deficiency. Ascorbate is a cofactor for two alpha-ketoglutarate-requiring dioxygenase reactions (epsilon-N-trimethyllysine hydroxylase and gamma-butyrobetaine hydroxylase) in the pathway of carnitine biosynthesis. Carnitine concentrations are variably low in some tissues of scorbutic guinea pigs. Ascorbic acid deficiency in guinea pigs resulted in decreased activity of hepatic gamma-butyrobetaine hydroxylase and renal but not hepatic epsilon-N-trimethyllsine hydroxylase when exogenous substrates were provided. It remains unclear whether vitamin C deficiency has a significant impact on the overall rate of carnitine synthesis from endogenous substrates. Nevertheless, results of studies of enzyme preparations and perfused liver in vitro and of scorbutic guinea pigs in vivo provide compelling evidence for participation of ascorbic acid in carnitine biosynthesis.
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PMID:Ascorbic acid and carnitine biosynthesis. 196 62

Scurvy occurred in an elderly man with fatigue, dyspnea on exertion, and extensive ecchymoses and brawny edema of the legs. Platelet count, prothrombin time, and partial thromboplastin time were normal, but serum ascorbic acid level was very low. Other signs considered to be classic and almost pathognomonic for were absent: bleeding gums, hyperkeratotic follicles, coiled hairs, and perifollicular hemorrhages. Reliance on these well-known features of scurvy may obscure or delay diagnosis of an easily cured disorder Severe scurvy is most commonly suggested by tenderness, extensive ecchymoses, and brawny edema of the lower extremities.
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PMID:Bachelor scurvy. 709 49

Muscle may suffer from a number of diseases or disorders, some being fatal to humans and animals. Their management or treatment depends on correct diagnosis. Although no single method may be used to identify all diseases, recognition depends on the following diagnostic procedures: (1) history and clinical examination, (2) blood biochemistry, (3) electromyography, (4) muscle biopsy, (5) nuclear magnetic resonance, (6) measurement of muscle cross-sectional area, (7) tests of muscle function, (8) provocation tests, and (9) studies on protein turnover. One or all of these procedures may prove helpful in diagnosis, but even then identification of the disorder may not be possible. Nevertheless, each of these procedures can provide useful information. Among the most common diseases in muscle are the muscular dystrophies, in which the newly identified muscle protein dystrophin is either absent or present at less than normal amounts in both Duchenne and Becker's muscular dystrophy. Although the identification of dystrophin represents a major breakthrough, treatment has not progressed to the experimental stage. Other major diseases of muscle include the inflammatory myopathies and neuropathies. Atrophy and hypertrophy of muscle and the relationship of aging, exercise, and fatigue all add to our understanding of the behavior of normal and abnormal muscle. Some other interesting related diseases and disorders of muscle include myasthenia gravis, muscular dysgenesis, and myclonus. Disorders of energy metabolism include those caused by abnormal glycolysis (Von Gierke's, Pompe's, Cori-Forbes, Andersen's, McArdle's, Hers', and Tauri's diseases) and by the acquired diseases of glycolysis (disorders of mitochondrial oxidation). Still other diseases associated with abnormal energy metabolism include lipid-related disorders (carnitine and carnitine palmitoyl-transferase deficiencies) and myotonic syndromes (myotonia congenita, paramyotonia congenita, hypokalemic and hyperkalemic periodic paralysis, and malignant hyperexia). Diseases of the connective tissues discussed include those of nutritional origin (scurvy, lathyrism, starvation, and protein deficiency), the genetic diseases (dermatosparaxis, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, osteogenesis imperfecta, Marfan syndrome, homocystinuria, alcaptonuria, epidermolysis bullosa, rheumatoid arthritis in humans, polyarthritis in swine, Aleutian disease of mink, and the several types of systemic lupus erythematosus) and the acquired diseases of connective tissues (abnormal calcification, systemic sclerosis, interstitial lung disease, hepatic fibrosis, and carcinomas of the connective tissues). Several of the diseases of connective tissues may prove to be useful models for determining the relationship of collagen to meat tenderness and its other physical properties. Several other promising models for studying the nutrition-related disorders and the quality-related characteristics of meat are also reviewed.
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PMID:Diseases and disorders of muscle. 839 47

In a 17-year-old woman with anorexia nervosa, scurvy was diagnosed as the cause of fatigue, abdominal pain, vaginal bleeding and several distinctive skin lesions.
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PMID:[Diagnostic image (40). Scurvy]. 1141 66

A 53-year-old woman was referred because of progressive haematomas of the lower extremities and fatigue. Her medical history included hyperplastic gums and tooth loss. Scurvy was diagnosed; this was the result of an insufficient diet due to a paranoid psychosis. There was a dramatic improvement within a few days after addition of vitamin C and starting highly nutritious food. Scurvy is easily treated, but is not a disease of the past.
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PMID:[Bruises, loose teeth and fatigue in a patient with schizophrenia]. 1642 57

A 53-year-old woman, known with a schizophrenic disorder and a history of drug addiction, was referred because of progressive hematomas of the lower extremities and fatigue. Her medical history included hyperplastic gums, tooth hypermobility and anaemia. Scurvy was diagnosed as a result of an insufficient diet due to drug addiction and a paranoid psychosis. After suppletion of vitamin C and starting highly nutritious food a rapid amelioration of the scurvy related complaints was observed. While dreaded and often fatal in earlier eras, in the 21st century scurvy is easily treatable if this diagnosis is recognised.
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PMID:[A schizophrenic patient with loss of teeth]. 1672 66

Symptoms of bone pain and skin rashes are not uncommon following a variety of infectious illnesses, but the underlying mechanisms are not well understood. The case of a 9-year-old boy with autism was recently described, who was hospitalized because of pain in the right hip, refusal to walk, fatigue, irritability, skin rash, and subsequent gingival swelling after an unspecified upper respiratory illness. The boy was diagnosed with scurvy. However, the gingival symptoms occurred after treatment with indomethacin, which lowers vitamin C levels; severe bone pain and fatigue are also well-documented symptoms of hypervitaminosis A. This review of a case report of a boy with autism provides an opportunity to present a new hypothesis of the mechanism of these postinfection symptoms in the context of an increasingly common condition of childhood.
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PMID:Bone pain, growth failure, and skin rash after an upper respiratory illness in a boy with autism: possible association with altered retinoid metabolism. 1856 48

Historically, scurvy has been associated with sailors of great navigational epochs. This disease has been known since ancient Egypt, but nowadays it is almost forgotten. Although its prevalence has decreased over the centuries, scurvy is still present in developed countries. A 61-year-old man was referred to hospital with a 30-day history of anorexia, fatigue, gingival bleeding and ecchymosis of the arms and legs. On physical examination he presented gingival hypertrophic lesions, signs of chronic periodontitis and petechial rash, and several bruises on his arms and legs. A food frequency questionnaire revealed a long history of poor diet, with no vegetables or fruit. The patient had ingested only chocolate milk and cookies for the last 10 years due to fear of pesticides being present in foods of vegetable origin. A diagnosis of scurvy induced by obsessive-compulsive disorder was suspected, and after vitamin C supplementation there was a marked improvement of symptoms.
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PMID:Scurvy induced by obsessive-compulsive disorder. 2168 98

Scurvy is caused by prolonged dietary deficiency of vitamin C, the plasma concentration of which appears inversely related to mortality from all causes. Its clinical importance relates principally to its role as a cofactor in a number of enzyme reactions involved in collagen synthesis, dysfunction of which disrupts connective tissue integrity, resulting in impaired wound healing and capillary bleeding. In the UK, overt scurvy is diagnosed only rarely. However, subclinical vitamin C deficiency appears quite common, one study estimated that 25% of men and 16% of women in the low income/materially deprived population had vitamin C deficiency, with smoking a strong predictor. Because many of the early symptoms of vitamin C deficiency (fatigue, malaise, depression and irritability) are non-specific, the diagnostic possibility of scurvy is usually delayed until haemorrhagic manifestations occur. The classical cutaneous features consist of perifollicular purpura, contorted (corkscrew) hairs and follicular hyperkeratosis, particularly affecting the legs. Large areas of purpura or ecchymosis may occur. Swelling and bleeding of the gums is an early mucosal symptom, and progressively severe gum disease causes loss of teeth. Subperiosteal haemorrhage, particularly in the femur and tibia, can present as pain, pseudoparalysis, swelling and discoloration of the legs. Haemorrhage into joints and muscle is very uncomfortable. Diagnosis is generally made on the basis of clinical features, corroborated by a history of dietary inadequacy, and the subsequent rapid resolution of symptoms with the restoration of an adequate vitamin C intake.
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PMID:Be vigilant for scurvy in high-risk groups. 2321 73

Vitamin C participates in several physiological processes, among others, immune stimulation, synthesis of collagen, hormones, neurotransmitters, and iron absorption. Severe deficiency leads to scurvy, whereas a limited vitamin C intake causes general symptoms, such as increased susceptibility to infections, fatigue, insomnia, and weight loss. Surprisingly vitamin C deficiencies are spread in both developing and developed countries, with the latter actually trying to overcome this lack through dietary supplements and food fortification. Therefore new strategies aimed to increase vitamin C in food plants would be of interest to improve human health. Interestingly, plants are not only living bioreactors for vitamin C production in optimal growing conditions, but also they can increase their vitamin C content as consequence of stress conditions. An overview of the different approaches aimed at increasing vitamin C level in plant food is given. They include genotype selection by "classical" breeding, bio-engineering and changes of the agronomic conditions, on the basis of the emerging concepts that plant can enhance vitamin C synthesis as part of defense responses.
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PMID:Strategies to increase vitamin C in plants: from plant defense perspective to food biofortification. 2373 60


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