Posted on 04/17/2002 2:14:59 AM PDT by LarryLied
The disease most commonly associated with Victorian industrial slums has reappeared in the West Midlands.
A major study, carried out by experts concerned about a re-emergence of rickets, has revealed there were 24 new cases in just one year.
The disease resulted in toddlers being unable to walk and developing bow legs, researchers from Birmingham Children's Hospital found.
They also discovered babies with low levels of blood calcium, which causes fits. Extremely low levels can lead to heart failure, as heart muscles do not develop sufficiently. All the cases of rickets and low blood calcium were caused by Vitamin D deficiency.
One of the most important sources of Vitamin D is sunlight, but experts warn that in Britain there is too little sunshine between October and March to produce enough of the vitamin. They are warning that breast-fed babies and pregnant women should taken vitamin supplements to guard against the disease.
Dr Nick Shaw, consultant endocrinologist at the Children's Hospital, is concerned that the public and health professionals have become complacent about the risk of rickets.
"It is viewed as a historical condition, a disease of the past which is not likely to occur again. That is not the case. There is always going to be that risk if children do not have an adequate Vitamin D intake."
The research is being presented to the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health meeting today at the University of York.
Rickets most commonly affects children aged six months to two years, causing a progressive softening and weakening of the bone structure.
Researchers contacted all 119 consultant paediatricians in the West Midlands asking whether they had identified any cases of rickets in children aged up to five between May 2000 and May 2001.
There was a total of 24 cases, which included 11 babies aged between one year and 18 months who had bow legs.
Four toddlers aged over 18 months were unable to walk, due to weakness in their leg muscle caused by rickets.
Six babies were found to have low blood calcium, which was identified after parents reported fits in their babies.
The children were all successfully treated with Vitamin D, but if the disease is not picked up early it can lead to long term development problems.
All but one of the 24 cases were either Asian or Afro-Caribbean children.
Dr Shaw said this is because people with dark skins need more sunlight in order to produce sufficient levels of Vitamin D. "There is no doubt that if you have a dark skin and live in a country which does not have a lot of sunlight for a six months of the year, you are more at risk.
"In countries like the UK, the angle of the sun against the earth is such that there is not enough wavelength to produce adequate synthesis of Vitamin D. Going out during the winter months is not enough."
Dr Shaw emphasised that women should not be discouraged from breast feeding, but should ensure their babies have Vitamin D supplements, as breast milk contains low levels of the vitamin.
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