sprue (redirected from nontropical sprue)

sprue ¹  (spr)

n.

A chronic, chiefly tropical disease characterized by diarrhea, emaciation, and anemia, caused by defective absorption of nutrients from the intestinal tract.

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[Dutch spruw, from Middle Dutch sprouwe.]

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

sprue - a chronic disorder that occurs in tropical and non-tropical forms and in both children and adults; nutrients are not absorbed; symptoms include foul-smelling diarrhea and emaciation psilosis, tropical sprue disorder, upset - a physical condition in which there is a disturbance of normal functioning; "the doctor prescribed some medicine for the disorder"; "everyone gets stomach upsets from time to time"