Abstract

CARVAJAL, Tomas; FRANCO, Diana L; MARTINEZ, Adriana  and  PENA, Iván M. Wernicke´s encephalopathy and polyneuropathy associated with vitamin B complex deficiency after a bariatric surgery. Biomédica [online]. 2012, vol.32, n.4, pp.474-484. ISSN 0120-4157.  https://doi.org/10.7705/biomedica.v32i4.765.

Bariatric surgery is a treatment that guarantees a substantial and lasting weight loss in addition to the tangible benefits relating to obesity-associated medical conditions. The increasing number of bariatric surgeries has revealed an increasing number of complications related to this procedure, including Wernicke´s encephalopathy and vitamin B deficiency polyneuropathies. Herein, a 7-week post-surgery case of Wernicke´s encephalopathy is presented that emphasizes the importance of an early recognition of these symptoms so as to initiate intervention during the reversible phase of these potentially lethal pathologies.

Keywords : Wernicke encephalopathy; polyneuropathies; obesity; gastric bypass; thiamine; pyridoxine.

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