Difference Between Kwashiorkor And Marasmus

Difference Between Kwashiorkor And Marasmus

Clinical features of marasmus and kwashiorkor.
Answer.

Marasmus

Weight loss Dehydration , Dirrhea.

Stomach shrinkage

Severe wasting of muscles

Kwashiorkor and Marasmus: Key Differences Explained

• Loss of subcutaneous fat (Limbs appear as skin and bones)
• Skin is dry and atrophic
• Anaemia
• Eye lesions due to Vitamin A deficiency
• Irritability and fretfulness
• Diarrhoea
• Dehydration
• Body temperature is sub-normal
• Failure to thrive
• Wrinkled skin – Old man’s face
• Grossly underweight

Kwashiorkor

Inability to grow or gain weight , Edema ,or swelling of the hands and feet.

Stomach bulging

Growth failure

• Oedema of the face and lower limbs
• Muscle wasting
• Fatty liver
• Anorexia(loss of appetite)
• Diarrhoea
• Change in the colour, sparse, soft and thin hair.
• Change in the colour of the skin(hypo and hyperpigmentation)
• Anaemia
• Vitamin A deficiency
• Angular stomatitis(Cracks in the corners of mouth)
• Cheilosis (inflammation and cracks in lips)
• Moon face

Kwashiorkor vs Marasmus: Symptoms, Causes, and Treatment

Question 8. Difference between kwashiorkor and marasmus.
Answer.