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OBSERVATIONS ON OCULAR LESIONS DUE TO ARIBOFLAVINOSISNine adults, 17 to 53 years of age, with ariboflavinosis were studied.Five were colored females, 3, white females, and 1, a wlhite nmale. All the patients had evidence of ariboflavinosis, both eye lesions anld other lesions. When first seen only 4 were free from othe,r (leficiency disease; 5 had signs of one or more other deficiency diseases. These were associated with ariboflavinosis in the following combinations: Avitaminosis C; pellagra; pellagra and avitaminosis A; pellagra, neuritis, and aniemia; pellagra, neuritis, anemia, and nutritional edema.As regards etiology, all gave a history of generally deficient diets; but 5 showed, in addition, other factors contributing to inadequate intake or to disturbance in utilization of nutrients. These factors were, respectively, colitis with diarrhea, sore tongue and diarrhea, sore tongue and self-imposed diet limitation, sore tongue and anorexia, and syphilis.During the period of observation, 6 patients were hospitalized and three were treated as out-patients. Hospitalized patients were maintained on a basal diet on which the oral lesions of ariboflavinosis were known to occur when supplemented with adequate amounts of other vitamins. Out-patients were advised not to change their home diets and to avoid yeast and cod-liver oil except as the latter was prescribed. The program in administering vitamin supplements was designed to demonstrate the lesions specific for aribofiavinosis and the sequence of changes in them. Most cases had multiple deficiency diseases calling for various supplements. First, there was administration of vitamins other than riboflavin, for they were not present in the basal diet in amounts sufficient for prompt and complete removal of other I In addition to funds supplied by the three organizations with which the authors are affiliated, facilities available to the University of Georgia M\edical School from a grant-in-aid by the John and Mery R. Markle Foundation also were used in the study.
