title: Outbreak of beri-beri in a prison in West Africa.
abstract: The International Committee of the Red Cross investigated an outbreak of beri-beri in a prison in West Africa. Twenty-five prisoners out of a total of 1020 died over a period of 11 weeks--exceeding the crude mortality rate of 1/10,000/day, a threshold for serious concern. Two hundred and eleven prisoners had clinical signs of beri-beri. An immediate response to treatment with thiamine was seen and no further deaths occurred. The triad of a positive squatting test, oedema and a diet consisting exclusively of white rice should lead to the diagnosis of beri-beri. The disease is more common than generally assumed, also in Africa and especially in prisons.
authors.affiliation: International Committee of the Red Cross, Geneva, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Dominique
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: de Montmollin
authors.forename: Julie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: MacPhail
authors.forename: Jenny
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: McMahon
authors.forename: Rudi
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Coninx
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000354:Africa, Western / Q000453:epidemiology; D001602:Beriberi / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000628:therapy; D002423:Cause of Death; D004034:Diet Surveys; D004196:Disease Outbreaks / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods; D015596:Nutrition Assessment; D012275:Oryza; D010808:Physical Examination / Q000379:methods; D015995:Prevalence; D011329:Prisoners / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011330:Prisons / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012307:Risk Factors; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013831:Thiamine / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D013831:Thiamine