Explain about the Deficiency of Riboflavin?
Riboflavin deficiency results in the condition of hypo- or ariboflavinosis, with sore throat, hyperaemia (condition in which the blood collects in a part of the body), oederna of the pharyngeal and oral mucous membranes, cheilosis (cracking of the corner of the mouth), angular stomdatitis (inflammation at the corner of the mouth), glossitis (inflammation or the infection of the tongue), seborrheic dermatitis and normochromic, normocytic anaemia associated with pure red cell cytoplasia of the bone marrow. As riboflavin deficiency almost invariably occurs in combination with a deficiency of other B-complex vitamins, some of the symptoms (e.g. glossitis and dermatitis) may result from other complicating deficiencies.
The major cause of hyporiboflavinosis is inadequate dietary intake as a result of limited food supply, which is sometimes exacerbated by poor food storage or processing. Children in developing countries like ours will commonly demonstrate clinical signs of riboflavin deficiency during periods of the year when gastrointestinal infections are prevalent. Decreased assimilation of riboflavin also results from abnormal digestion, such as that which occurs with lactose intolerance. This condition is highest in African and Asian populations and can lead to a decreased intake of milk, as well as, an abnormal absorption of the vitamin. Absorption of riboflavin is also affected in some other conditions, for example, tropical sprue, celiac disease, malignancy and resection of the small bowel and decreased gastrointestinal passage time. In relatively rare cases, the cause of deficiency is inborn errors, in which the genetic defect is in the formation of a flavoprotein (e.g. acyl-coenzyme A [CoA] dehydrogenases). Also, at-risk are infants receiving phototherapy for neonatal jaundice and perhaps those with inadequate thyroid hormone. Some cases of riboflavin deficiency have' been observed in south-east Asian school children infected with hookworm.