Konzo associated with war in Mozambique.
Trop Med Int Health
; 2(11): 1068-74, 1997 Nov.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-9391509
ABSTRACT
We report an epidemic of konzo, symmetric spastic paraparesis associated with cassava consumption and cyanide exposure 384 patients were treated in rehabilitation centres; the prevalence rate in a badly affected area was 30/1000. Most patients were children over 3 and women. Owing to war, communities turned to bitter cassava as their staple and took shortcuts in its processing. When the war ended, they continued to depend on inadequately processed bitter cassava. The epidemic lasted 2 years (the last year of war and the first of peace) with peaks each year during the cassava harvest. Although most cases were reported from rural inland areas, patients also came from small towns and the coast. School children had raised urinary thiocyanate and linamarin and low inorganic sulphate concentrations. Urinary thiocyanate values were lower than those previously reported in konzo epidemics, probably because we collected specimens before the cassava harvest and epidemic peak. The necessary conditions for konzo were present intensive cultivation of bitter casava, insufficient processing, a probable high cyanide intake, and a low intake of protein-rich foods.
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Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Guerra
/
Paraparesia Espástica Tropical
/
Manihot
/
Surtos de Doenças
/
Cianeto de Hidrogênio
Tipo de estudo:
Risk_factors_studies
Limite:
Adolescent
/
Adult
/
Child
/
Child, preschool
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
/
Middle aged
País/Região como assunto:
Africa
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
1997
Tipo de documento:
Article