While the time of looting and pirating may be over apparently the time of scurvy is not. That's right, one of the ancient diseases is on the rise and it's all thanks to weight loss surgery. See how this horrifying disease is making its comeback.
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Ancient Diseases On The Rise
Scurvy is a disease caused by a vitamin C deficiency. It used to plague sailors and pirates centuries ago and now it is plaguing people of modern society. How did it make its comeback? A new study found that weight loss surgery seems to be the answer.
Although scurvy was mostly eradicated from the population today, Australian doctors claim that there were still a few cases of it floating around. They claimed that "sporadic cases of scurvy occur, especially in the elderly, patients with alcoholism and children with psychiatric or developmental problems."
However the NY Post shares that this newest case of scurvy seemingly came out of no where. They wrote, "The physicians, from Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital in western Australia, report the case of a 50-something unemployed ex-smoker who complained of a painful rash on both legs that seemingly came out of nowhere.
They didn't know it yet, but one of the ancient diseases was on the rise and rearing its ugly head. This man had "Blood in his urine" and he was "suffering from anemia" as well as "a low red blood cell count."
Baffled Doctors Discover Mystery Disease Is Scurvy
This man and his painful rash had all of the doctors baffled. He was testing negative for everything that they thought of. "Inflammatory, autoimmune, and blood disorders" were all ruled out. Additionally "Scans revealed no evidence of internal bleeding, and a skin biopsy yielded no clues."
However, is rash was showing no signs of stopping. In fact, it was quite the opposite. The man was suffering from further swelling and pain down both of his legs. Finally, a nutritional panel discovered the answer. He was suffering from various nutritional deficiencies as well as "undetectable vitamin C levels."
That is when doctors knew, this man was battling scurvy.
How Did This Ancient Disease Make It's Comeback?
Upon further investigation, the doctors learned that his man did not have the best living conditions. Due to financial issues he was forced to neglect his diet and health. His diet consisted mostly of processed food and he did not get nearly enough vegetables and fruit, therefore lacking essential vitamins and minerals. Furthermore, the NY Post reported that "Sometimes he would skip meals, which occurred more frequently in recent weeks."
On top of all of that, "He had also stopped taking the vitamin and mineral supplements prescribed following gastric bypass surgery" as his current financial situation did not allow him to afford them. Apparently, "Eight years prior, the patient had undergone a sleeve gastrectomy to remove a large portion of his stomach so he could lose weight."
Luckily, the medical staff caring for him knew just what to do. They prescribed him a regiment of vitamins C, D3, folic acid, and a multivitamin daily. They also "devised a meal plan" specifically for him and "the man started eating a lemon a day." Quickly after his treatment began, his rash subsided and the blood in his urine disappeared.
The authors of the study reported what they believed to be risk factors in contracting scurvy. They said the risk factors were "poor nutrition, gastric bypass surgery, dialysis, psychiatric history and eating disorders. "
I don't know about you, but I sure hope this is the only one of the ancient diseases on the rise.
