Case Report
Wernicke’s Encephalopathy: A Forgotten Disease
Sevda Onuk 1
, Hasan Dirik 2
, Ramazan Aktaş 3
, Şahin Temel 2
, Nevzat Herdem 4
, Nurhayat Tuğra Özer 5
, Gülşah Güneş Şahin 6
, Murat Sungur 6
, Kürşat Gündoğan 6
, Hasan Dirik 2
, Ramazan Aktaş 3
, Şahin Temel 2
, Nevzat Herdem 4
, Nurhayat Tuğra Özer 5
, Gülşah Güneş Şahin 6
, Murat Sungur 6
, Kürşat Gündoğan 6
1Department of Anesthesiology and Reanimation Erciyes University Faculty of Medicine, Kayseri, Turkey
2Department of Internal Medicine, Erciyes University Faculty of Medicine, Kayseri, Turkey
3Department of Emergency Medicine, Erciyes University Faculty of Medicine, Kayseri, Turkey
4Department of Radiology Erciyes University Faculty of Medicine, Kayseri, Turkey
5Division of Clinical Nutrition, Erciyes University Health Sciences Institute, Kayseri, Turkey
6Department of Internal Intensive Care, Erciyes University Faculty of Medicine, Kayseri, Turkey
2Department of Internal Medicine, Erciyes University Faculty of Medicine, Kayseri, Turkey
3Department of Emergency Medicine, Erciyes University Faculty of Medicine, Kayseri, Turkey
4Department of Radiology Erciyes University Faculty of Medicine, Kayseri, Turkey
5Division of Clinical Nutrition, Erciyes University Health Sciences Institute, Kayseri, Turkey
6Department of Internal Intensive Care, Erciyes University Faculty of Medicine, Kayseri, Turkey
J Clin Pract Res 2019; 41(4): 456-458 DOI: 10.14744/etd.2019.32391
Abstract
Wernicke’s encephalopathy (WE) is an acute neurological condition characterized by ataxia, confusion, ocular findings, and impairment of consciousness due to thiamine deficiency. Although alcoholism is the most common reason, WE cases resulting from prolonged total parenteral nutrition (TPN) without multivitamin complex have been reported. Here we present a dramatic improvement in symptoms with high-dose thiamine in a patient who developed WE due to TPN after gastrointestinal surgery.
Keywords: Thiamin, Wernicke’s encephalopathy, total parenteral nutrition, micro nutrient, ICU.