Pellagra

Vitamin B3 deficiency; Deficiency - niacin; Nicotinic acid deficiency

Vitamin B3 deficit

Schedule an Appointment

Definition

Pellagra is a disease that occurs when a person does not get enough niacin (one of the B complex vitamins) or tryptophan (an amino acid).

Causes

Pellagra is caused by having too little niacin or tryptophan in the diet. It can also occur if the body fails to absorb these nutrients.

Pellagra may also develop due to:

  • Gastrointestinal diseases
  • Weight loss (bariatric) surgery
  • Anorexia
  • Excessive alcohol use
  • Carcinoid syndrome (group of symptoms associated with carcinoid tumors of the small intestine, colon, appendix, and bronchial tubes in the lungs)
  • Certain medicines, such as isoniazid, 5-fluorouracil, 6-mercaptopurine, pyrazinamide, hydantoin, ethionamide, phenobarbital, azathioprine, and chloramphenicol

Pellagra is most common among poor and food-limited populations. The disease is more common in parts of the world (such as certain parts of Africa) where people have a lot of untreated corn in their diet. Corn is a poor source of tryptophan, and niacin in corn is tightly bound to other components of the grain. Niacin is released from corn if soaked in limewater overnight. This method is used to cook tortillas in Central America where pellagra is rare. Pellagra is rare in the United States and may be associated with severe alcoholism or medical causes of malnutrition.

Symptoms

Symptoms of pellagra include:

  • Delusions or mental confusion
  • Diarrhea
  • Weakness
  • Loss of appetite
  • Pain in abdomen
  • Inflamed mucous membrane
  • Scaly skin sores, especially in sun-exposed areas of the skin

Exams and Tests

Your health care provider will perform a physical exam. You will be asked about the foods you eat.

Tests that may be done include urine tests to check if your body has enough niacin. Blood tests may also be done.

Treatment

The goal of treatment is to increase your body's niacin level. You will be prescribed niacin supplements. You may also need to take other supplements. Follow your provider's instructions exactly on how much and how often to take the supplements.

Symptoms due to the pellagra, such as skin sores, will be treated.

If you have conditions that are causing the pellagra, these will also be treated.

Outlook (Prognosis)

People often do well after taking niacin.

Possible Complications

Left untreated, pellagra can result in nerve damage, particularly in the brain and death. Skin sores may become infected.

When to Contact a Medical Professional

Contact your provider if you have any symptoms of pellagra.

Prevention

Pellagra can be prevented by following a well-balanced diet.

Get treated for health problems that may cause pellagra.

References

Mason JB, Booth SL. Vitamins, trace minerals, and other micronutrients. In: Goldman L, Cooney KA, eds. Goldman-Cecil Medicine. 27th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2024:chap 199.

Meisenberg G, Simmons WH. Micronutrients. In: Meisenberg G, Simmons WH, eds. Principles of Medical Biochemistry. 4th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2017:chap 31.

So YT. Deficiency diseases of the nervous system. In: Jankovic J, Mazziotta JC, Pomeroy SL, Newman NJ, eds. Bradley and Daroff's Neurology in Clinical Practice. 8th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2022:chap 85.

GO

Review Date: 10/27/2024

Reviewed By: Laura J. Martin, MD, MPH, ABIM Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Hospice and Palliative Medicine, Atlanta, GA. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.

The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed medical professional should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Links to other sites are provided for information only -- they do not constitute endorsements of those other sites. No warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, is made as to the accuracy, reliability, timeliness, or correctness of any translations made by a third-party service of the information provided herein into any other language.

© 1997- A.D.A.M., a business unit of Ebix, Inc. Any duplication or distribution of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited.


All content on this site including text, images, graphics, audio, video, data, metadata, and compilations is protected by copyright and other intellectual property laws. You may view the content for personal, noncommercial use. Any other use requires prior written consent from Ebix. You may not copy, reproduce, distribute, transmit, display, publish, reverse-engineer, adapt, modify, store beyond ordinary browser caching, index, mine, scrape, or create derivative works from this content. You may not use automated tools to access or extract content, including to create embeddings, vectors, datasets, or indexes for retrieval systems. Use of any content for training, fine-tuning, calibrating, testing, evaluating, or improving AI systems of any kind is prohibited without express written consent. This includes large language models, machine learning models, neural networks, generative systems, retrieval-augmented systems, and any software that ingests content to produce outputs. Any unauthorized use of the content including AI-related use is a violation of our rights and may result in legal action, damages, and statutory penalties to the fullest extent permitted by law. Ebix reserves the right to enforce its rights through legal, technological, and contractual measures.


BACK
TO
TOP