Also called Whipple disease, a rare disorder of the digestive system. Intestinal lipodystrophy is due to a bacterial infection. Its symptoms usually include abdominal pain, diarrhea, weight loss, joint pain, swollen lymph nodes, abnormal pigmentation, anemia, fever, and malabsorption of nutrients. Intestinal lipodystrophy most commonly affects middle-aged men. Treatment requires the long-term administration of antibiotics.
A disease characterized principally by fat deposits in intestinal and mesenteric lymphatic tissue, fatty diarrhea, loss of weight and strength, and arthritis.