Lathyrism in rural northwestern Ethiopia: a highly prevalent neurotoxic disorder

Lathyrism is a disorder of the central motor system, induced by heavy consumption of the grass-pea, Lathyrus sativus an environmentally tolerant legume containing the neurotoxic excitatory amino acid beta-N-oxalylamino-L-alanine (BOAA). A complete door-to-door resurvey of the Dembia and Fogera regions of northwestern Ethiopia, areas endemic for lathyrism, revealed an estimated mean disease prevalence of 0.6%-2.9%. Most patients developed the disease in the epidemic of 1976/77, although new cases appear to have occurred with an estimated mean annual incidence of 1.7:10,000. Production and consumption of grass-pea is increasing in Ethiopia, making attempts to develop low-BOAA strains to prevent lathyrism increasingly important.