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Disease name : Trimethylaminuria ( TMAU ) , also known as " Pisces the Fishes odor syndrome "
Affected populations : TMAU is a rare metabolic condition that get a soul to smelllike rotten Pisces . The condition ismore vernacular in womenthan in men , and there ’s grounds that distaff sex hormones , such as progesterone , can exacerbate patients ' symptoms .
Trimethylaminuria causes people to smell like rotten fish because their urine, sweat and breath contain high levels of a pungent chemical that is normally metabolized in the gut.
The exact prevalence of TMAU is unnamed , and estimate of global cases vary greatly , ranging from1 in a million to 1 in 200,000 masses .
reason : Patients with TMAU smell like fish due to a buildup of a chemical substance called trimethylamine in their body . Trimethylamine is farm by bacteria in the gut as abyproduct of the digestionof sure intellectual nourishment , includingeggs , liver , legumes and specific kinds of seafood , such as fish , calamari and crab .
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Patients with trimethylaminuria should avoid eating seafood, which can aggravate their symptoms.
Normally , an enzyme in the bodybreaks down trimethylamineinto an odorless chemical substance , known as trimethylamine N - oxide , which is then excretedvia urine . This enzyme is encode by a gene called FMO3 .
In patients with TMAU , though , this enzymatic process does n’t happen , so trimethylamine pile up in the body and ends up being unloosen in extra quantities in patients’sweat , piddle and hint . This makes them smell like rotten Pisces .
Most cases of TMAU are because of mutations in the FMO3 gene that prevent the enzyme it encodes from turn properly . In these instances , patients inherit the disease in an autosomal recessionary personal manner , meaning they must inherit two written matter of the mutated FMO3 cistron — one from each parent — to develop the consideration .
More rarely , TMAU can be triggered by waste a orotund quantity of food for thought that lead to trimethylamine output . It can also lead from liver bankruptcy and certain aesculapian treatments , such as testosterone replacement therapy , which bear on the processing and yield of trimethylamine , respectively . Hormonal change contribute about by the menstrual oscillation can also cause a short-lived form of TMAU .
symptom : Symptoms of TMAU may bepresent from birth or arise later in life history , normally near the start ofpuberty(roughly around old age 8 to 13 in females and 9 to 14 in male ) , whenmany hormonal changes fall out .
Some patients with TMAUhave a strong fishy odor all the time , while the smell may come and go for others with the term . A patient role ’s strain levels and diet can worsen their symptom by increasing their sweat product and levels of trimethylamine , severally .
TMAUis not deadly , but the condition can havedevastating effectson patients ' lineament of biography , by impeding theirrelationships with others and their career , for instance . These impact can considerably hinder theirmental healthand may head to symptom of depression , anxiety andsuicidal thoughtsin some .
treatment : There is no curative for TMAU . However , wellness care providers may commend that patients avoid foods that contain trimethylamine or inwardness thatcan be broken down into the chemical substance . These include milk from wheat berry - fed cows , as well as eggs , liver , kidney , seafood and pea .
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patient may also be propose to wash out their skinwith a slimly acidic grievous bodily harm or shampoo , to avoid arduous exercise that causes sweating , to moisten their clothes frequently and to apply antiperspirant . They may also be rede to take measures to deoxidize their strain levels .
Additionally , medico canprescribe low doses of antibioticsto boil down the amount of bacterium in the catgut that metabolise trimethylamine . They may also dictate activated charcoal , which binds to and reduces the amount of trimethylamine thatcan be absorb from the catgut . ( Activated oxford grey can interact with many medications , though , so it should be used with caution . )
This article is for informational purposes only and is not meant to offer medical advice .
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