An apple a day ... chronic glossitis in a 4-year-old boy.

Abstract

We report a case of chronic glossitis in a 4-year-old boy due to scurvy. The boy showed up in our department with a patchy depapillated tongue. A detailed dietary history revealed an unbalanced diet without any fruit or vegetable. The biological investigations showed a low serum ascorbic acid. The boy was treated by oral ascorbic acid during 15 days. The glossitis improved within one week and serum levels of vitamin C returned to the normal range. In industrial countries, scurvy became a rare disease in healthy children. However, since a few years, cases are reported in children and teenagers with unbalanced diet coming from economically favoured families. These extreme cases are one of the signs of a more general deterioration of dietary habits in paediatric populations in our societies. This emphasizes the importance of effective nutritional education programs aimed towards both parents and children.

• Authors: F Codreanu, S Jarlot, C Astier, M Tisserand, Z Asbati, R Hatahet, P Sergeant, G Kanny
• Journal: European annals of allergy and clinical immunology (Eur Ann Allergy Clin Immunol) Vol. 44 Issue 2 Pg. 86-8 (Apr 2012) ISSN: 1764-1489 [Print] Italy
• PMID: 22768729 (Publication Type: Case Reports, Journal Article)

Chemical References

• Vitamins
• Ascorbic Acid

Topics

• Ascorbic Acid (therapeutic use)
• Child, Preschool
• Glossitis (etiology)
• Humans
• Male
• Scurvy (complications, drug therapy)
• Vitamins (therapeutic use)