Acquired Acrodermatitis Enteropathica in a 28-Year-Old Male with Type 1 Diabetes

Owen Ngalamika; Wencilaus M P Selvaraj; Fatima K Yikona; Chibamba Mumba

doi:10.1155/2021/5572583

Acquired Acrodermatitis Enteropathica in a 28-Year-Old Male with Type 1 Diabetes

Case Rep Dermatol Med. 2021 May 25:2021:5572583. doi: 10.1155/2021/5572583. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Owen Ngalamika^{1

2}, Wencilaus M P Selvaraj¹, Fatima K Yikona³, Chibamba Mumba^{2

4}

Affiliations

¹ Dermatology and Venereology Division, University Teaching Hospital, Lusaka, Zambia.
² University of Zambia School of Medicine, Lusaka, Zambia.
³ Chelston Level One Hospital, Lusaka, Zambia.
⁴ Pathology and Microbiology Department, University Teaching Hospital, Lusaka, Zambia.

Abstract

Acrodermatitis enteropathica (AE) is a rare disorder arising from inherited or acquired zinc deficiency. It is mainly characterized by acral dermatitis, periorificial dermatitis, alopecia, and gastrointestinal symptoms in the form of diarrhea. There are many complications of AE including local and systemic infections that may develop as a result of untreated AE. In addition, due to the role of zinc in glucose metabolism, chronic zinc deficiency may pose a challenge in the control of blood glucose levels in diabetics. We report the case of a 28-year-old male with type 1 diabetes who presented with signs and symptoms of AE.

Publication types

Case Reports