kwashiorkor

[ kwah-shee-awr-kawr, -ker ]

/ ˌkwɑ ʃiˈɔr kɔr, -kər /

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noun Pathology.

a malnutrition disease, chiefly of children, caused by severe protein and vitamin deficiency and characterized by retarded growth, changes in pigmentation, potbelly, and anemia.

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Origin of kwashiorkor

1930–35; <Ga kwašiɔkɔ the influence a child is said to be under when his mother becomes pregnant with her next child; spelling with r's is r-less speaker's representation of the vowels

Words nearby kwashiorkor

kwanza, Kwanzaa, Kwanzaa or Kwanza, Kwara, kwartje, kwashiorkor, Kwaśniewski, KwaZulu, KwaZulu-Natal, Kwedien, Kweichow

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

British Dictionary definitions for kwashiorkor

kwashiorkor

/ (ˌkwæʃɪˈɔːkə) /

noun

severe malnutrition of infants and young children, esp soon after weaning, resulting from dietary deficiency of protein

Word Origin for kwashiorkor

C20: from a native word in Ghana

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for kwashiorkor

kwashiorkor

[ kwä′shē-ôr′kôr′ ]

A severe malnutrition, seen primarily in children of tropical and subtropical regions, caused by deficiency in the quality and quantity of dietary protein. Kwahiorkor is characterized by failure to grow, anemia, liver damage, edema, discoloration of the skin or hair, and bulky stools containing undigested food.