Tropical sprue
| Tropical sprue | |
|---|---|
| Video explanation | |
| Classification and external resources | |
| Specialty | gastroenterology |
| ICD-10 | K90.1 |
| ICD-9-CM | 579.1 |
| DiseasesDB | 13393 |
| MedlinePlus | 000275 |
| eMedicine | med/2162 |
| Patient UK | Tropical sprue |
| MeSH | D013182 |
Tropical sprue is a malabsorption disease commonly found in tropical regions, marked with abnormal flattening of the villi and inflammation of the lining of the small intestine. It differs significantly from coeliac sprue. It appears to be a more severe form of environmental enteropathy.
The illness usually starts with an attack of acute diarrhoea, fever and malaise following which, after a variable period, the patient settles into the chronic phase of diarrhoea, steatorrhoea, weight loss, anorexia, malaise and nutritional deficiencies. The symptoms of tropical sprue are:
Left untreated, nutrient and vitamin deficiencies may develop in patients with tropical sprue. These deficiencies may have the following symptoms:
The cause of tropical sprue is not known. It has been suggested that it may be caused by persistent bacterial, viral, amoebal, or parasitic infection.Folic acid deficiency, effects of malabsorbed fat on intestinal motility, and persistent small intestinal bacterial overgrowth may combine to cause the disorder.
Diagnosis of tropical sprue can be complicated because many diseases have similar symptoms. The following investigation results are suggestive:
Tropical sprue is largely limited to within about 30 degrees north and south of the equator. Recent travel to this region is a key factor in diagnosing this disease in residents of countries outside of that geographical region.
Other conditions which can resemble tropical sprue need to be differentiated.Coeliac disease (also known as coeliac sprue or gluten sensitive enteropathy), has similar symptoms to tropical sprue, with the flattening of the villi and small intestine inflammation and is caused by an autoimmune disorder in genetically susceptible individuals triggered by ingested gluten. Malabsorption can also be caused by protozoan infections, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, immunodeficiency, chronic pancreatitis and inflammatory bowel disease.Environmental enteropathy is a less severe, subclinical condition similar to tropical sprue.
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