Scurvy in children: a case report in an autistic patient

Abstract

Scurvy is a disease related to the deficiency of Vitamin C and presents a low incidence in contemporary times. Autism is a spectrum of disease that affects 17 out to 1000 children and leads 89% of them to have food selectivity. In this context, we present a case report of an autistic patient affected by scurvy due to self-imposed food restriction and subsequent nutritional deficiency. With a range of nonspecific findings, after several complementary exams and many diagnostic hypotheses later, so the diagnosis of scurvy was made by exclusion. The patient was empirically treated and showed rapid improvement in the general condition. Thus, the present report draws attention to food selectivity in autistic patients, due to the high risk of nutritional deficiencies and the repercussions on the patient's health, such as scurvy.