1 Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, University of Connecticut School of Medicine
In Reply.
The absence of carnitine in the urine during the recovery phase of secondary carnitine deficiency is unusual as pointed out by Dr Kahler. During this time the infant was being treated with a high carnitine diet (formula plus beef broth) and was regaining weight lost during his acute illness. Because values of urine and plasma carnitine were random spot samples and not obtained with the infant fasting, the discrepancy between a normal plasma total carnitine and zero urinary excretion may have been somewhat artifactual.