emaciation

{{Infobox medical condition (new)

| name = Emaciation

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| image = Starved child.jpg

| caption = Photo from 1972 of an emaciated child in India with marasmus

| pronounce = {{IPAc-en|ᵻ|ˌ|m|eɪ|ʃ|iː|ˈ|eɪ|ʃ|ən}}, {{IPAc-en|ᵻ|ˌ|m|eɪ|s|iː|ˈ|eɪ|ʃ|ən}}

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Emaciation is defined as the state of extreme thinness from absence of body fat and muscle wasting usually resulting from malnutrition. It is often seen as the opposite of obesity.

Characteristics

Emaciation manifests physically as thin limbs, pronounced and protruding bones, sunken eyes, dry skin, thinning hair, a bloated stomach, and a dry or coated tongue in humans. Emaciation is often accompanied by halitosis, hyponatremia, hypokalemia, anemia, improper function of lymph and the lymphatic system, and pleurisy and edema.

Causes

File:Buchenwald-J-Rouard-12.jpg inmates, 16 April 1945, when the camp was liberated]]{{See also|Malnutrition}}

Emaciation can be caused by undernutrition, malaria and cholera, tuberculosis and other infectious diseases with prolonged fever, parasitic infections, many forms of cancer and their treatments, lead poisoning, and eating disorders like anorexia nervosa.

Emaciation is widespread in least developed countries and was a major cause of death in Nazi concentration camps during World War II.

Animals

File:Gong Kai, Emaciated Horse.jpg]]

A lack of resources in the habitat, disease, or neglect and cruelty from humans in captivity can result in emaciation in animals. In the rehabilitation of emaciated animals, the specific dietary needs of each animal have to be considered to avoid causing harm.

Treatment

References

{{Reflist|2|refs=

{{cite web |url=http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/emaciation |title=Emaciation |work=Medical-Dictionary.TheFreeDictionary.com |access-date=January 19, 2012}}

{{cite book |title=A new system of medicine, entitled recognizant medicine; or, The state of the sick |first=Bholanoth |last=Bose |orig-year=First published 1877 (2009) |pages=[https://archive.org/details/anewsystemmedic00bosegoog/page/n205 192]–199 |publisher=J. & A. Churchill |location=London |url=https://archive.org/details/anewsystemmedic00bosegoog |quote=Emaciation. |access-date=January 19, 2012|year=1877 }}

{{cite web |url=http://www.anapsid.org/emaciation.html |title=Emaciation (Starvation) Protocol |work=Anapsid.org |date=Dec 2009 |access-date=January 19, 2012}}

{{cite web |url=http://www.spca.bc.ca/cruelty/what-is-animal-cruelty.html |title=What is animal cruelty? |work=The British Columbia SPCA |access-date=January 19, 2012 |archive-date=March 4, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120304204801/http://www.spca.bc.ca/cruelty/what-is-animal-cruelty.html}}

}}

External links

{{Medical resources

| DiseasesDB =

| ICD10 = {{ICD10|E|41||e|40}}

| ICD9 = {{ICD9|261}}, {{ICD9|799.4}} (US) - Cachexia; 261 if attributed to severe malnutrition (Coding Clinic, 1st Quarter, 2013)

| MeshID = D004614

}}

Category:Malnutrition