[Neurological complications of the anemia-geophagia syndrome]

The authors report five, mortal, vasculo-cerebral hemorrhage complications in anaemic and geographic patients. The five observations are stereotyped, the accidents occurring two weeks after the start of treatment, which included a complete blood transfusion and the admission of injectable iron and oral folic acid. Physiopathogenesis is obscure, and no identical case seems to be described in literature. The authors link these accidents to less serious neurological manifestations normally observed during iron-deficient anaemia. They blame cerebral anoxia and the deficient terrain.