Copper Deficiency

Copper deficiency.

Copper deficiency myelopathy.

BACKGROUND In humans, Menkes disease is the well-recognized neurological disorder due to inherited copper deficiency. Myelopathy due to acquired copper deficiency is not a well-recognized entity in humans, although myelopathy due to copper deficiency is well documented in some animal species. PATIENTS We describe 3 patients who developed a progressive spastic-ataxic gait with proprioceptive d...

Familial benign copper deficiency.

Hypocupraemia with normal caeruloplasmin levels was found in a 21-month-old boy admitted to hospital because of repeated seizures and failure to thrive. He had blonde curly hair, spurring of the femora and tibiae, and mild anaemia, but his mental development, electroencephalogram, and structure of the hair on microscopical examination were normal. There was a general improvement in his conditio...

Copper deficiency mimicking myelodysplastic syndrome

Copper is an essential element for all living organisms, because it has key activities in the metabolic enzymes such as cytochrome oxidase and superoxide dismutase, and in the proteins essential for iron homeostasis such as ceruloplasmin and hephaestin. In humans, the daily copper requirement is low, therefore copper deficiency is not so frequently a condition. However, we should be aware that ...

Copper deficiency myelopathy (human swayback).

The hematologic manifestations of copper deficiency are well known and include anemia and neutropenia. In the past few years, the neurological manifestations of acquired copper deficiency in humans has been recognized, the most common being a myelopathy presenting with a spastic gait and prominent sensory ataxia. The known causes of acquired copper deficiency include prior gastric surgery, exce...