A case of Liddle syndrome and review of literature / 中华内分泌代谢杂志

The clinical data, laboratory test, and gene mutations were collected from a family with Liddle syndrome. Literatures on Liddle syndrome published in domestic and abroad since 1994 were reviewed and the types of gene mutations were summarized. The proband was diagnosed with hypertension at the age of 24. Laboratory test showed that serum potassium was 3.65 mmol/L, plasma renin was <0.5 mU/L, and plasma aldosterone was 1.5 ng/dL. Proband′s father was diagnosed with hypertension at the age of 34 with the serum potassium 3.34 mmol/L, plasma renin 3.72 mU/L, and plasma aldosterone 6.04 ng/dL. A nonsense mutation(1724G>A, p.Trp575*) in exon 13 of SCNN1G gene was detected in the proband and his father. In 288 cases from 107 families reported in the review of domestic and foreign literature, the incidence of hypertension, hypokalemia, and low renin/low aldosterone were 95.1%, 55.2%, and 49.6%, respectively. This case suggests that the clinical phenotype of Liddle syndrome is heterogeneous. Patients with early-onset hypertension, regardless of whether they are accompanied by hypokalemia, should be screened for renin-angiotensin-aldosterone and genetic testing related to Liddle syndrome should be further detected in patients with low plasma renin/aldosterone.

Clinical characteristics and long-term follow-up of patients with idiopathic isolated ACTH deficiency / 中华内分泌代谢杂志

Objective:To summarize the clinical characteristics, reveal evolutionary patterns, and enhance the understanding of idiopathic isolated adrenocorticotripin(ACTH)deficiency(IIAD)by conducting a clinical analysis and follow-up.Methods:The clinical data of 12 patients with IIAD in our center were analyzed retrospectively, and the patients were further followed up to summarize the clinical characteristics of these patients.Results:Among 12 patients with IIAD, the ratio of male to female was 3∶1. The onset showed a bimodal trend, with 2 cases occurring below the age of 18(at 1 year and 11 years respectively), and 10 cases occurring in adults, with an average onset age of 59.4 years old. In adults, the main symptoms were chronic fatigue, anorexia, and weight loss, while pediatric patients exhibited hypoglycemia and seizures. Hyponatremia(50%)was a common biochemical abnormality. ACTH, cortisol, and 24 h urinary free cortisol were significantly lower in all patients, and the functions of other pituitary gland axes were normal. All patients were normal except 2 patients with pituitary MRI showing vacuolar sella turcica. The most common accompanying disease was Hashimoto thyroiditis. After glucocorticoid replacement therapy, all patients showed symptom improvement. The replacement doses include prednisone acetate at 2.5-7.5 mg/d or hydrocortisone at 12-20 mg/d. All the 8 patients were still alive with ongoing ACTH deficiency, without any decline in other pituitary axis functions or occurrence of other diseases.Conclusion:IIAD exhibits a bimodal onset pattern with a higher prevalence in males. Symptoms persist in a chronic and stable manner without remission. Prognosis is favorable with physiological dose of glucocorticoid replacement therapy.