viii. effects of deficiency 303 



2. Indirect Evidences of Need for Essential Fatty Acids 

 a. Observations on Patients with Eczema 



Inasmuch as one of the outstanding features of the low fat diet in experi- 

 mental animals results in a development of skin abnormalities, the rela- 

 tionships which have been found between dietary fat and eczematous con- 

 ditions of the skin may be more than incidental. Study^^' ^^ of the iodine 

 number of the serum fatty acids of patients with eczema disclosed definitely 

 lower values than for those of control groups of patients. For example: 

 four out of five infants under 2 years of age suffering eczematous eruptions, 

 three out of four children from 2 to 15 years, and over half of the subjects 

 over 15 years had iodine values of the serum fatty acids definitely below the 

 normal range. In the study by Hansen et a/.,'"' there were 171 patients with 

 eczema and 101 in the control group. This observation has been confirmed 

 by a number of investigators.^!"*^ The tetra- and polybromide numbers of 

 the total fatty acids from pooled samples of serum from patients with 

 eczema were found to be lower than in serum samples from control sub- 

 jects.** Finnerud et al.'^^ found no consistent differences in the polybromide 

 numbers of the fatty acids between control subjects and eczematous pa- 

 tients, and there was no correlation between the polybromide number and 

 the clinical condition of the patient. 



A number of workers^^' *"■ *^' **■ *^-*^ have reported that the addition 

 of fat rich in unsaturated fatty acid to the diet of patients with chronic 

 eczema favorably influences the condition of the skin. In studies in our own 

 clinics, before a change was made in therapeutic regimen the patients usually 

 were observed from periods of 3 weeks to 3 months. As a rule, fresh lard or 

 vegetable oil was added beginning with 1 teaspoonful two or three times a 

 day, and gradually increased so that by 2 weeks the patient was receiving 

 the ecjuivalent of 1 tablespoonful two or three times a day. In most in- 

 stances no particular difficulty was encountered in consuming the extra fat ; 

 however, in some instances the patients preferred to use fresh lard as a 



38 A. E. Hansen, Proc. Soc. Exptl. Biol. Med. 30, 1198 (1933). 



39 A. E. Hansen, Am. J. Diseases Children 53, 933 (1937). 



*" A. E. Hansen, E. M. Knott, H. F. Wiese, E. Shaperman, and I. McQuarrie, Am. 



J. Diseases Children 73, 1 (1947). 

 " H. K. Faher and D. B. Roberts, J. Pediat. 6, 490 (1935). 

 « L. Schornstein, Z. Kindcrhcilk. 59, 52 (1937). 

 <3 C. W. Finnerud, R. L. Kesler, and H. F. Wiese, Arch. Dermatol, and Syphilol. 



44, 849 (1941). 

 "A. V. Stoesser, J. Aller(jy 18, 29 (1947). 



«W. R. Brown and A. E. Hansen, Proc. Soc. Exptl. Biol. Med. 36, 113 (1937). 

 " A. E. Hansen, Proc. Soc. Exptl. Biol. Med. 31, 160 (1933). 

 " T. Cornbleet and E. R. Pace, Arch. Dermatol, and Syphilol. 31, 224 (1935). 

 ^8 E. .\zerad and C. Crupper, Bull. mem. soc. med. hop. Paris 64, 21 (1948); Bull. 



soc.frang. dermatol. syphilig. 55, 24, 230 (1948); Semaine hop. Paris 25, 684 (1949). 



