[Treatment of neurological complication due to postgastrectomy vitamin E deficiency]

Although postgastrectomy vitamin E deficiency rarely occurs, it can cause neuromuscular disorder such as neuropathy, myopathy and cerebellar ataxia. We encounter a lot of cases whose serum vitamin E level were decreased after gastrectomy. We evaluated the oral vitamin E intake as a therapy to these cases. The subjects of this study were 11 gastrectomized patients (8 patients had total gastrectomy, 2 subtotal gastrtectomy, 1 partial gastrectomy) with decreased vitamin E. 10 patients had neurological complications such as dizziness, dysesthesia, truncal ataxia. Serum vitamin E increased to normal level in 10 patients and neurological disturbances were improved in 9 patients. The minimum requirement of oral vitamin E intake was 150 mg a day for normalization of serum vitamin E, on the other hand, it decreased with 150 mg intake in some patients. Their serum level increased with 300 mg. We suggest that it is important to check serum vitamin E in gastrectomized patients and oral vitamin E should be supplied over 300 mg for the therapy with vitamin E deficiency.