Kashin-Beck disease is a selenium responsive endemic osteoarthropathy and necrosis of the joints and epiphysial plate cartilage.
A bone illness that primarily affects children and young people, Kashin-Beck disease cuts a large swath across China. It is sometimes called ‘big-bone disease’ and areas of its high prevalence form a crescent running from the Tibetan plateau through China into eastern Siberia.
Strong epidemiologic evidence exists supporting the environmental nature of this disease. The lack of normal levels of selenium in the soil is suspected to being a major factor in the etiology of this disease. Kashin-Beck disease affects children between 5 to 13 years of age.
Kashin-Beck disease
