Blue diaper syndrome is a metabolic disorder caused by the incomplete breakdown of the dietary nutrient and obligatory serotonin (5-HT) precusor tryptophan. Excessive amounts of tryptophan are broken down by intestinal bacteria, thus converting the excessive tryptophan into indican. The indican is then absorbed by the intestinal wall and excreted in urine, thus causing the bluish discoloration seen in infants’ diapers. Blue diaper syndrome is believed to be an inherited, autosomal, possibly X-linked, recessive trait.
A rare autosomal recessive syndrome in which the amino acid tryptophan is not absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract.