Whipple’s disease is a rare disease caused by Tropheryma whipplei bacteria. The bacteria affect your small intestine’s ability to process nutrients. Symptoms are joint pain followed by chronic diarrhea, abdominal pain and unexplained weight loss. Antibiotics eliminate the bacteria, but the infection may come back.
Whipple’s disease is a rare bacterial infection in your small intestine. It affects your body’s ability to digest food and absorb nutrients (malabsorption). You may develop Whipple’s disease after exposure to Tropheryma whipplei, a common bacterium that lives in dirt. Fortunately, a combination of antibiotics kills the bacteria in your body, eases your symptoms and cures the condition.
While the bacterium that causes the disease is common, Whipple’s disease is very rare. Experts analyzing Whipple’s disease cases estimate it affects 9 in 1 million people in the U.S. Not everyone who encounters T.whipplei develops the disease.
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Whipple’s disease symptoms develop in phases (stages), starting with joint pain that’s severe and may come and go. The pain typically affects your large joints — your ankles, elbows, hips, knees and shoulders. Healthcare providers may call this the prodromal phase. This phase may last seven or eight years before you develop more symptoms, including:
Between 20% and 40% of people with Whipple’s disease develop central nervous system issues that cause symptoms like:
Experts know that a type of bacteria often found in dirt causes Whipple’s disease. Anyone who encounters the bacteria could be at risk of infection. But Whipple’s disease is rare, and it’s not clear why more people don’t develop the disease after exposure.
Research suggests the following factors may increase your risk of developing the disease:
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Whipple’s disease affects your body’s ability to absorb fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and other nutrients from food that passes through your small intestine. It’s a progressive disease, meaning that it gets worse over time and causes new and more serious medical issues, including:
Whipple’s disease that affects your central nervous system can be fatal.
Healthcare providers do a physical examination. They’ll take a medical history and ask about current and past changes in your body. They may do the following tests:
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It can take a long time to get rid of the bacteria that cause Whipple’s disease. Treatment includes:
Antibiotics may cause the following side effects:
That’s hard to say. The bacteria that cause Whipple’s disease are everywhere in our environment, particularly in dirt. But not everyone who encounters them develops Whipple’s disease.
People with weak immune systems or who take immunosuppressants have an increased risk of developing the disease. If that’s your situation, it’s a good idea to wear gloves or to wash your hands thoroughly any time you work in dirt and mud.
If you’re like most people with Whipple’s disease, you’ll feel better soon after you start treatment. But it can take as long as two years for your small intestine to recover completely.
Treatment often cures Whipple’s disease, but it can come back after treatment. Your healthcare provider may recommend you have regular long-term follow-up tests. For example, they may recommend you have an upper endoscopy:
The most important thing is to take your antibiotics as prescribed. Most people will take antibiotics for at least a year after their diagnosis, and some people may need antibiotics for the rest of their lives.
If you have Whipple’s disease, you’ve been missing out on vital nutrients. Treatment will make you feel better, but you may want to ask a dietitian for recommendations on what you should eat and drink.
Contact your provider if you still have Whipple’s disease symptoms after you start treatment or if your symptoms come back after treatment.
The disease and the bacterium that causes it are named for George H. Whipple, a medical pathologist who first described the symptoms in 1907. More than 80 years later, researchers identified the bacterium that causes Whipple’s disease. They named it Tropheryma whipplei. The name honors Whipple’s work in discovering the disease and combines the Greek terms for nourishment (trophe) and barrier (eryma), or barrier to nourishment (malabsorption).
A note from Cleveland Clinic
There are bacteria all around us (and inside our bodies). In general, the bacteria we encounter daily don’t hurt us. The rare bacterial infection Whipple’s disease is an exception to that rule. Whipple’s disease happens after exposure to Tropheryma whipplei, a common bacteria that lives in dirt.
You may run into T. whipplei on the job or working in the yard. But not everyone who has exposure to it develops Whipple’s disease. And fortunately, prompt diagnosis and treatment often cure the condition.
Last reviewed on 08/09/2024.
Learn more about the Health Library and our editorial process.
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Cleveland Clinic is a non-profit academic medical center. Advertising on our site helps support our mission. We do not endorse non-Cleveland Clinic products or services. Policy