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Case Reports: Reminder of important clinical lesson
Reversible dementia in the setting of multiple medical comorbidities due to B12 deficiency
  1. Christopher Wong,
  2. Fuad Benyaminov and
  3. Lauren Block
  1. Department of General Internal Medicine, Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, New Hyde Park, New York, USA
  1. Correspondence to Dr Christopher Wong; wong.christopher.a{at}gmail.com

Abstract

Vitamin B12 deficiency is a cause of reversible dementia that must be ruled out in the evaluation of neurocognitive decline. We present a case of neurocognitive decline secondary to B12 deficiency where the workup was obscured by multiple competing diagnoses and treatment with empiric B12 supplementation reversed symptoms. Although the pretest probability was low, the morbidity from undiagnosed B12 deficiency is high, warranting a trial of B12 supplementation that resolved the patient’s symptoms.

  • General practice / family medicine
  • Medical management
  • Neurology

http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bcr-2021-248440

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    Footnotes

    • Contributors CW wrote the primary draft. FB assisted with the literature review and assisted with the primary draft and gave edits. LB provided final review and detailed edits.

    • Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

    • Case reports provide a valuable learning resource for the scientific community and can indicate areas of interest for future research. They should not be used in isolation to guide treatment choices or public health policy.

    • Competing interests None declared.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.