Abstract
Thiamine, also known as v itamin B1, is an essential nutrient required for all living tissues. It can be found in high concentration inside the heart, kidneys, brain and skeletal muscles. A severe depletion is not commonly seen, except in cases of inadequate nutrition and/or alcoholism. The major manifestation of t hiamine d eficiency involves the nervous (d ry b eriberi, or neuropathy and/or Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome) and cardiovascular (wet b eriberi or c ardiomyopathy) systems. This report details the case of a female patient with severe t hiamine d eficiency secondary to dysphagia caused by radiation injury. She developed debilitating polyneuropathy and cardiomyopathy with decreased ejection fraction. Early recognition and adequate t hiamine replacement led to a full recovery in this case. In addition, we will discuss the potential benefits of t hiamine supplementation in treating c ongestive h eart f ailure. J Med Cases. 2014;5(5):308-311 doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.14740/jmc1780w
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