What is the Difference Between Dry and Wet Beriberi

Beriberi is a disease caused by a deficiency of vitamin B1, also known as thiamine. Vitamin B1 is essential for the body to break down and digest food, and it plays a key role in metabolism, as well as in maintaining the proper functioning of muscles and the nervous system. The two main types of beriberi are dry beriberi and wet beriberi.

The key difference between dry and wet beriberi is their effect. Dry beriberi mainly affects the central and peripheral nervous system, while wet beriberi mainly affects the cardiovascular system.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Dry Beriberi
3. What is Wet Beriberi
4. Similarities – Dry and Wet Beriberi
5. Dry vs Wet Beriberi in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Dry vs Wet Beriberi
7. FAQ – Dry and Wet Beriberi

What is Dry Beriberi?

Dry beriberi is a form of beriberi that damages the central nervous system (CNS) and peripheral nerves. It disrupts the motor functioning and impairs reflexes. The typical symptoms of dry beriberi may include numbness of the hands and feet (extremities), confusion, trouble moving the legs, pain, difficulty with walking, loss of tendon reflexes, loss of muscle function or paralysis of the lower legs, mental confusion/speech difficulties, involuntary eye movements (nystagmus), and vomiting.

Figure 01: Difficulty in Walking in Dry Beriberi

Wernicke encephalopathy and Korsakoff syndrome are forms of dry beriberi. It can be diagnosed through physical symptoms evaluation, blood tests, neurological examinations, and brain scans. Furthermore, dry beriberi is treated by eating thiamine-fortified foods, supplementing thiamine, and using physical therapy and other therapies.

What is Wet Beriberi?

Wet beriberi is a form of beriberi that specifically affects the heart and cardiovascular system. Wet beriberi causes heart failure and weakening of capillary walls, which makes peripheral tissues becoming edematous. The typical symptoms of wet beriberi may include increased heart rate, vasodilation leading to decreased systemic vascular resistance, high-output heart failure, elevation of jugular venous pressure, dyspnea on exertion, paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea, peripheral edema, and dilated cardiomyopathy.

Figure 02: Thiamine

Wet beriberi can be diagnosed through physical examination, blood test, and electrocardiogram (EKG). Furthermore, treatment options for wet beriberi may include giving thiamine intravenously and orally later and taking medications for heart-related problems, such as pacemakers.

Similarities Between Dry and Wet Beriberi

1. Dry and wet beriberi are the two main types of beriberi.
2. Both are caused by vitamin B1 deficiency.
3. Both have the same risk factors: a diet of mostly white rice, alcoholism, dialysis, chronic diarrhoea, and taking high doses of diuretics.
4. Both these can be diagnosed through physical examination and blood tests.
5. They can be treated by taking thiamine intravenously or orally.

Difference Between Dry and Wet Beriberi

Definition

1. Dry beriberi is a form of beriberi that damages the nervous system.
2. Wet beriberi is a form of beriberi that specifically affects the heart and circulatory system.

Effect

1. Dry beriberi disrupts motor functioning and impairs reflexes.
2. Wet beriberi causes heart failure and weakening of capillary walls, which leads to the peripheral tissues becoming edematous.

Symptoms

1. Symptoms of dry beriberi include numbness of the hands and feet, confusion, trouble moving the legs, and pain.
2. Symptoms of wet beriberi include fast heart rate, shortness of breath, and leg swelling.

Diagnosis

1. Dry beriberi is caused by physical symptoms evaluation, blood test, neurological examination, and brain scans (MRI and CT scan).
2. Wet beriberi is caused by physical examination, blood test, and electrocardiogram (EKG).

Treatment

1. Dry beriberi is treated by eating thiamine-fortified foods, thiamine supplementation, physical therapy, and other therapies, such as speech therapy.
2. Wet beriberi is treated by giving thiamine, eating thiamine-fortified foods, and taking medications for heart-related problems such as pacemakers, beta-blockers, calcium channel blockers, digoxin, diuretics, etc.

The following table summarizes the difference between dry and wet beriberi.

Summary – Dry vs Wet Beriberi

Beriberi disease is a medical condition due to low levels of thiamine (vitamin B1). This disease causes severe weakness. There are different forms of beriberi: dry beriberi, wet beriberi, gastrointestinal beriberi, infant beriberi. Among them, dry and wet beriberi are the main two forms of beriberi. Dry beriberi mainly affects the central and peripheral nervous system while wet beriberi mainly affects the cardiovascular system. This is the key difference between dry and wet beriberi.

FAQ: Dry and Wet Beriberi

1. What are the symptoms of dry beriberi?

• Difficulty walking, loss of feeling in hands and feet, loss of muscle function or paralysis of the lower legs, mental confusion, pain, speech difficulties, strange eye movements, and tingling.

2. How to distinguish wet and dry beriberi?

• Beriberi has historically been divided into two main types: wet beriberi and dry beriberi. Wet beriberi affects the cardiovascular system, which includes the heart and other circulatory system components, whereas dry beriberi impairs the central and peripheral nervous systems.

3. What is Wernicke’s disease?

• Wernicke’s encephalopathy is a type of dry beriberi. It is a degenerative brain disorder caused by the lack of vitamin B1. It can result from alcohol abuse, dietary deficiencies, and prolonged vomiting.

4. What is the presentation of wet beriberi?

• Tachcardia, low diastolic pressure, cardiomegaly, pulmonary edema, high-output heart failure, pulmonary edema and cyanosis are indications of wet beriberi. Moreover, wet beriberi is also characterized by elevated lactic acid levels.

5. What is the treatment for beriberi?

• The goal of the treatment for beriberi is to increase the thiamine level in the blood. Doctors may recommend oral or intravenous injections to increase the vitamin B1 level in the blood. Patients may also include thiamine-fortified foods in their regular diet.

Reference:

1. “Beriberi: Causes, Symptoms, Treatments, and More.” WebMD.
2. Tanabe, Natsumi, et al. “Wet Beriberi Associated with Hikikomori Syndrome.” Journal of General Internal Medicine, U.S. National Library of Medicine.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Thiamin” By NEUROtiker – Own work (Public Domain) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “Beriberi USNLM” (PD-US) via Commons Wikimedia

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