tropical sprue

noun

Examples of tropical sprue in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
At that time, his fortunes lower than ever, two of his older brothers died of tropical sprue, an acute infectious disease of the small bowel that at the time had no known cause or treatment. Aaron Gilbreath, Longreads, 5 June 2018

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1955, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of tropical sprue was circa 1955

Dictionary Entries Near tropical sprue

Cite this Entry

“Tropical sprue.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tropical%20sprue. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.

Medical Definition

tropical sprue

noun
: a disease of tropical regions that is of unknown cause and is characterized by fatty diarrhea, malabsorption of nutrients, and weight loss
Though pathologically indistinguishable from nontropical sprue (i.e., gluten-sensitive enteropathy, or celiac disease), tropical sprue … does not respond to the removal of gluten from the diet …Edward T. Ryan et al., The New England Journal of Medicine

called also sprue

More from Merriam-Webster on tropical sprue

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!