D-Lactic Acidosis in Humans: Review of Update

D-Lactic acidosis has been well documented in ruminants. In humans, D-lactic acidosis is very rare, but D-lactic acidosis may be more common than generally believed and should be looked for in a case of metabolic acidosis in which the cause of acidosis is not apparent. The clinical presentation of D-lactic acidosis is characterized by episodes of encephalopathy and metabolic acidosis. The entity should be considered as a diagnosis in a patient who presents with metabolic acidosis accompanied by high anion gap, normal lactate level, negative Acetest, history of short bowel syndrome or malabsorption, and characteristic neurologic manifestations. Low carbohydrate diet, bicarbonate treatment, rehydration, and oral antibiotics would be helpful in controlling symptoms.