Keshan disease

Keshan disease is a congestive

Often fatal, the disease affects children and women of child-bearing age, characterized by heart failure and pulmonary edema. Over decades, supplementation with selenium reduced this condition.^[3]

It had been linked to the

Keshan disease can also lead to higher rates of cancer, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and strokes. In addition, an individual can experience eczema, psoriasis, arthritis, cataracts, alcoholism, and infections.^[citation needed]

Signs and symptoms

There are four main types of Keshan disease: acute, subacute, chronic, and latent.

Some signs and symptoms of acute Keshan disease include dizziness,

Some signs and symptoms of subacute Keshan disease include malaise, restlessness, gallop rhythm, facial edema, heart dilation, and cardiac shock.

Some signs and symptoms of chronic Keshan disease include palpitations, dyspnea, cough (with blood), pain in one's right upper quadrant, edema, oliguria, enlargement of the heart, systolic murmur, gallop rhythm, and hepatomegaly.

Some signs and symptoms of latent Keshan disease include dizziness, fatigue, palpitations, and mild enlargement of the heart.^[6]

Diagnosis

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Prevention

It is hard to consider Keshan disease extremely preventable because the only way to ensure that the individual is getting enough selenium would be to test the soil in the area. However, one way that selenium intake can be improved is to increase intake of foods that are rich with selenium. Examples include Brazil nuts, onions, canned tuna, beef, cod, turkey, chicken breast, enriched pasta, egg, cottage cheese, oatmeal, white or brown rice, and garlic. If the individual lives in an area that does not have selenium enriched soil, dietary supplementation should be considered. To determine whether or not an individual is selenium deficient, blood testing is performed.^{[citation needed]}

Treatments

The treatment for Keshan disease is selenium supplementation. The recommended amounts are fifty-five micrograms of selenium per day for adult men and women, sixty micrograms a day for women during pregnancy and seventy micrograms per day for women after pregnancy. A doctor may insist that if a man is sexually active, he may have to take up to seventy micrograms of selenium per day. A doctor may also recommend that the individual take vitamin E; selenium and

An individual will most likely be prescribed selenium supplements (in the form of selenomethionine) or have injections of this mineral. Other recommendations for managing Keshan disease are to increase consumption of foods rich in selenium in addition to supplements, avoid alcohol, monitor side effects to medications, and increase sleep. Cardiac surgery (implants, stents or full heart transplant) may be advised.[8]

See also

• Selenium deficiency
• Kashin–Beck disease

References