Vitamin Deficiency Symptoms

Vitamin A deficiency
Xeropthalmia in rat - dryness of the cornea
Early stages are curable

Cured with 6 days treatment with Vitamin A

Late Stages are incurable - Vitamin A deficiency

Clouding of cornea, ulceration, keratomalacia

Vitamin A deficiency
Night Blindness
Imagine you are in the car at the left
and this is what you see.

Car approaches, note sign on the right.

Normal vision

Car passes. Notice distance down the road, signs.

Night Blindness

Eye fails to
adapt quickly to
decreased light.

Car passes. Notice distance down the road, signs.

Vitamin A
deficiency.
Human
shoulder.
Follicular hyperkeratosis. Goose flesh. Pustulation
occurs and is confused with acne.

Histological section of skin. Hair follicle with

hyperkeratosis. (Excess keratinized tissue).

Pellegra. Niacin deficiency.

Dermatitis, diarrhea, dementia.

Same patient after niacin treatment.

Riboflavin deficiency. Generalized dermititis &

growth failure. Marked keratitis of cornea.

1 month of riboflavin treatment. Only slight traces

of deficiency symptoms remain.

2 months of riboflavin treatment. No signs remain.

Thiamin deficiency - Polyneuritis. Arched back &

hyperextended legs, spastic gait, loss of balance.

Same rat as previous after 8 hrs treatment with

Thiamin HCL.

Pantothenic acid deficiency in chick

Same chick as previous after 3 weeks treatment.

Biotin deficiency - egg white injury from avidin

3 weeks therapy with biotin. Hair takes time to

grow but its recovering.

3 months therapy with biotin. Recovered. (fat rat)

Folic acid deficiency - stunted, poorly feathered,

severely anemic.

Folic acid adequate chick of same age as last.

(hard to believe, isnt it)

Normal and rachitic bone. Vitamin D deficiency.

Advanced rickets

Normal rat seminiferous tubules of testis showing

spermatatids. Vitamin E sufficient.

Intermediate stage of degeneration from Vit E

deficiency. Sperm production has ceased. Still
reversible.

Advanced degeneration. Tubules shrunken.

Irreversible. Sterile.

Normal rat fetuses at 16 days of pregnancy.

Vit E deficient rat at 16th day. Autolyzed fetuses &

placenta.

Muscular dystrophy from Vit E deficiency. Guinea

pig muscle fiber fragmentation, degeneration &
necrosis. Lots of infiltrating neutraphils, etc.

Normal muscle should look more like this.

Vit K deficiency. Spontaneous hemorrhages.

Normal Vit K sufficient bird for comparison.

Its a brain of a baby.

Vit K deficiency in man. Hemorrhagic disease of

newborn. Reason for Vit K injection at birth.

Vit A: Trachea, Keratinizing metaplasia. The flat

layer of cells at the surface shouldnt be there.

Vit A: Kidney. Keratinized cells without nuclei

shouldnt be there. Metaplasia occuring.

Vit A: Lung. Metaplasia & keritinization.

Vit A: Uterus. Keratinizing of stratified

squamous epithelium.

Farm Animals
The following slides, though not of
the highest quality, illustrate some of
the vitamin deficiencies in livestock.

Vit A: 6 mo old calves. Calf in rear got 20 ml cod

liver oil. Deficient calf in front was blind.

Vit A: Emaciation, night blindness, scours.

Vit A: Advanced xerophthalmia , clouded

cornea.

Vit A deficiency in diet of dam caused calf to

be born blind & weak.

Section of damaged optic nerve showing constriction.

Blind steer walking into a fence. Vitamin A deficiency

Edema (anasarca) of the brisket. Vit A deficiency.

Advanced anasarca in hindquarters of steer. Vit A.

Vit A deficiency in
pig on the right

Xeropthalmia (on rt.)

Paralysis of hind
limbs.

Lamb with stiff lamb

disease from Vitamin E
deficiency.

Muscle showing
white streaks where
degeneration occurs.

Vitamin E deficiency: Mulberry Heart disease.

Note massive white streaks of degeneration.

Pantothenic acid deficiency.

Typical Goose Stepping - incoordination.

Thiamine deficiency - Polyneuritis

Thiamine: Polyneuritis. Baby lamb is functional

nonruminant. Head retraction, incoordination.

Riboflavin
Top pig is markedly
smaller, poor doing,
poor hair coat and
skin.

Riboflavin
deficiency
Poor reproductive
performance;
stillborn pigs.

Niacin deficiency

Note difference in
growth and
condition.

Intestine: Compare this with the next slide showing

Niacin deficiency.

Intestine: Niacin deficiency results in necrotic

enteritis, ulceration. (Therefore extremely poor
absorption; scouring).

B6 (Pyridoxine) deficiency
Pig showing an epilectic-like seizure

B6 (Pyridoxine) deficiency
Pigs showing marked difference in growth

Biotin deficiency
Skin lesions

Biotin deficiency
Epithelial lesions on foot of chickens

B12 deficiency
Note difference in
growth and condition.
Pig at top has not
grown as well and has
rougher skin and hair
coat.