American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 2, 323-335, Copyright © 1954 by The American Society for Clinical Nutrition, Inc.

Scurvy in Adult Africans

A Clinical, Haematological, and Pathological Study

¹ From the Baragwanath Hospital and University of Witwatersrand

Thirty cases of scurvy in adult Africans were studied in the space of a year.

The disease commonly presented as an affection of the legs together with evidence of general bleeding and/or hypertrophic gums. Six cases, however, presented with isolated haemorrhage into muscle or gums. It is suggested that (in Africans) scurvy may be responsible for some cases of isolated haemorrhage from bowel, kidney, or serous cavities.

In two patients, extensive chronic changes were encountered in a leg which had been the seat of acute scurvy 2-3 years previously. Similar, less extensive changes developed during the acute attack in other patients.

The histopathology of tissues at various stages is described, and autopsy findings in one case are reported. Some patients showed osteoporosis of bones. Blood proteins and liver function tests were abnormal in all patients. Some patients showed generalised oedema; others showed elevated jugular venous pressure and fluctuations of haemoglobin level during the acute attack. It is suggested that these may be signs of variations in blood volume.