Casefile 16: Beriberi

I never knew that there could be such an unfortunate deficiency with such a 'cute' name. Beriberi. haha. It's like Fruity Tooty.

AHEM anyway, Beriberi is caused by the lack of Thiamine a.k.a Vitamin B1

There are two major types of Beriberi,
Wet Beriberi and Dry Beriberi

Wet Beriberi causes a possibly fatal combination of heart failure and the weakening of capillary walls which causes peripheral tissues to become waterlogged. Symptoms include increased heart rate, swelling of lower legs and shortness of breath with activity.

Dry Beriberi damages peripheral nerves and this causes the person to become partially paralysed. Symptoms include difficulty walking, loss of feeling in hands and feet and speech difficulties.

There is a rare condition known as genetic beriberi. People with genetic beriberi lose the ability to absorb thiamine from foods. This can happen slowly over time and symptoms occur when the person is an adult.

Beriberi can also occur in infants when the milk he or she is feeding on, be it breat milk or formula, is lacking in thiamine. Luckily for those babies on formula milk, most formula milk made now has a lot of added vitamins and DHA and other things which contribute to a healthy bouncy baby.


When left untreated, Beriberi can lead to complications like psychosis, comas, congestive heart failure and even death.

So what is the treatment for Beriberi?

It is thiamine hydrochloride, either in tablet form or injection. Patients usually make a rapid recovery after getting treated. It also helps to eat food rich in thiamine, such as meat, vegetables, legumes and unrefined rice or cereal.

Again I stress how important it is to maintain a healthy diet as this is one way to prevent a great number of diseases. I mean you don't want to become like the Beriberi patient in the picture below.