Primary Extragonadal Germ Cell Tumors in Klinefelter Syndrome: 10-Years of Experience from a Single Institute / 임상소아혈액종양

Background@#Approximately 8% of male patients presenting with primary mediastinal germ cell tumors (GCTs) have Klinefelter syndrome (KS), while patients diagnosed with retroperitoneal GCTs also exhibit a range of chromosomal abnormalities. The exact mechanism underlying the development of GCTs in Klinefelter syndrome is unknown, but KS frequently goes underdiagnosed as a result of its varied symptoms and a low general awareness of this condition. Thus, the Children’s Oncology Group recommends screening of Klinefelter syndrome in pediatric and adolescent male subjects who present with GCTs. @*Methods@#We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of extragonadal germ cell tumor patients treated at Severance hospital, department of pediatrics or division of pediatric hematology-oncology over the last ten years. @*Results@#A total of 95 patients with extragonadal germ cell tumors were included in this study. Karyotyping was done in eight patients out of 95 patients, three patients with KS and one patient with Down syndrome. Twelve of extragonadal GCT patients presented at mediastinum, with most common histology of mature teratoma, and three patients presented with chromosomal abnormalities, two with KS and one with Down syndrome. A total of nine patients were diagnosed with retroperitoneal GCTs and only one had KS. @*Conclusion@#We described the characteristics of 95 cases of extragonadal GCTs. Although the mechanism of extragonadal GCTs in KS is not clear, karyotyping in pediatric and adolescent extragonadal GCT patients could be helpful in figuring out chromosomal abnormalities including KS and their roles in GCT pathophysiology, which can contribute to improve one’s health.

Aberrant DNA Methylation of CDH1, p16 and DAPK in Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia / 임상소아혈액종양

BACKGROUND: Hypermethylation of tumor suppressor gene has been reported in various types of leukemia with potential involvement in the inactivation of regulatory cell cycle and apoptosis genes.METHODS: To evaluate the methylation status at initial diagnosis and morphologic complete remission (CR) period in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), we analyzed the methylation status of three key genes (CDH1, p16 and DAPK) in 43 childhood ALL patients and 7 healthy bone marrow (BM) donors.RESULTS: CDH1 was methylated in 26 (60.4%) patients, p16 in two (4.6%) patients and DAPK in six (13.9%) patients at the time of diagnosis. Twenty nine (67.4%) patients had methylation of at least one gene. None of the healthy BM donors showed methylation of the above genes. Age was the only factor which showed significant association with the presence of DNA methylation (P=0.03). None of the other clinicopathological factors showed association with initial methylation status. At the time of morphologic CR, all patients who had aberrant DNA methylation at the time of diagnosis had no detectable residual methylation.CONCLUSION: Since hypermethylation was found in around two thirds of pretreatment ALL patients and none in healthy BM donor, we suggest hypermethylation of some important genes is a biologic marker of childhood ALL. We recommend that further studies with a large number of patients should be conducted.

Aberrant DNA Methylation of CDH1, p16 and DAPK in Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia / 임상소아혈액종양

BACKGROUND: Hypermethylation of tumor suppressor gene has been reported in various types of leukemia with potential involvement in the inactivation of regulatory cell cycle and apoptosis genes. METHODS: To evaluate the methylation status at initial diagnosis and morphologic complete remission (CR) period in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), we analyzed the methylation status of three key genes (CDH1, p16 and DAPK) in 43 childhood ALL patients and 7 healthy bone marrow (BM) donors. RESULTS: CDH1 was methylated in 26 (60.4%) patients, p16 in two (4.6%) patients and DAPK in six (13.9%) patients at the time of diagnosis. Twenty nine (67.4%) patients had methylation of at least one gene. None of the healthy BM donors showed methylation of the above genes. Age was the only factor which showed significant association with the presence of DNA methylation (P=0.03). None of the other clinicopathological factors showed association with initial methylation status. At the time of morphologic CR, all patients who had aberrant DNA methylation at the time of diagnosis had no detectable residual methylation. CONCLUSION: Since hypermethylation was found in around two thirds of pretreatment ALL patients and none in healthy BM donor, we suggest hypermethylation of some important genes is a biologic marker of childhood ALL. We recommend that further studies with a large number of patients should be conducted.

Increasing and Worsening Late Effects in Childhood Cancer Survivors during Follow-up

Recent advances in childhood cancer treatment have increased survival rates to 80%. Two out of three survivors experience late effects (LEs). From a group of 241 survivors previously described, 193 were followed at the long-term follow-up clinic (LTFC) of Severance Hospital in Korea; the presence of LEs was confirmed by oncologists. We reported the change in LEs during 3 yr of follow-up. The median follow-up from diagnosis was 10.4 yr (5.1-26.2 yr). Among 193 survivors, the percentage of patients with at least one LE increased from 63.2% at the initial visit to 75.1% at the most recent visit (P = 0.011). The proportion of patients having multiple LEs and grade 2 or higher LEs increased from the initial visit (P = 0.001 respectively). Forty-eight non-responders to the LTFC were older and had less frequent and severe LEs than responders at initial visit (all P < 0.05). In multivariate analysis, younger age at diagnosis, older age at initial visit, a diagnosis of a brain tumor or lymphoma, and use of radiotherapy were significant risk factors for LEs (all P < 0.05). Adverse changes in LEs were seen among the survivors, regardless of most clinical risk factors. They need to receive comprehensive, long-term follow up.

Two Cases of Wernicke's Encephalopathy in Young Age Patients Receiving Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation

Wernicke's encephalopathy is an acute neurolopsychiatric syndrome caused by thiamine deficiency, and classically presents with the triad of opthalmopathy, ataxia and altered mentality. Both prolonged total parenteral nutrition and reduced oral intake can induce Wernicke's encephalopathy during hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Although early treatment is important for recovery from Wernicke's encephalopathy, the vague symptoms and characteristics hinder early diagnosis. Furthermore, Wernicke's encephalopathy is not infrequent and can develop at any age during HSCT. Herein, we present two young patients developing Wernicke's encephalopathy during HSCT.

Acute Interstitial Pneumonia in Siblings: A Case Report

Acute interstitial pneumonia (AIP) is a rapidly progressive condition of unknown cause that occurs in a previously healthy individual and produces the histologic findings of diffuse alveolar damage. Since the term AIP was first introduced in 1986, there have been very few case reports of AIP in children. Here we present a case of AIP in a 3-yr-old girl whose other two siblings showed similar radiologic findings. The patient was confirmed to have AIP from autopsy showing histological findings of diffuse alveolar damage and proliferation of fibroblasts. Her 3-yr-old brother was also clinically and radiologically highly suspected as having AIP, and the other asymptomatic 8-yr-old sister was radiologically suspected as having AIP.

A Good Outcome for a Case of Chronic Pneumonitis of Infancy

Chronic pneumonitis of infancy (CPI) is a very rare interstitial lung disease. Its pathological features differ from other types of interstitial pneumonia that occur in adults and children. The mortality rate of CPI is high, even with treatment. We report a case of a 3 month old girl diagnosed with CPI after an open lung biopsy who improved after proper treatment.

A Case of Congenital Nephrogenic Diabetes Insipidus Presenting Fever in Neonatal Period / 대한주산의학회잡지

Congenital nephrogenic diabetes insipidus (NDI) is a rare disorder of the kidney characterized by the in ability to concentrate urine despite normal or elevated plasma concentration of the antidiuretic hormone agent vasopressin (AVP). We describe a case of congenital nephrogenic diabetes insipidus presenting with mild fever . The 3-day-old baby boy was admitted with mild fever. He has 6 members with DI in his family and his laboratoty finding showed hypernatremia, increased serum osmolarity and low level of urine specific gravity. Throughout the water deprivation test and the vasopressin test, he has been diagnosed as congenital NDI. Urinary free water loss was improved after treatment with hydrochlorothiazide and low salt formula. At the age 4 months, the infant has demonstrated normal growth and neurodevelopmental milestones. An early diagnosis of congenital NDI is very important, since the proper adequate management can prevent hyperosmolarity which might induce the delayed mental and physical development.

Effects of growth hormone treatment on glucose metabolism in idiopathic short stature / 소아과

PURPOSE: To study the effects of growth hormone(GH) treatment on glucose metabolism and insulin resistance in children with idiopathic short stature(ISS). METHODS: Glucose and insulin concentrations were measured during oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) before and after GH treatment(0.6-0.7 IU/kg/week) in 20 patients with ISS. Insulin resistance was assessed by homeostasis model assessment(HOMA). RESULTS: During OGTT, the mean blood glucose level did not show any significant changes after GH treatment. However, mean blood insulin levels of fasting and 30 minutes of OGTT showed significant increases after GH treatment, accompanying significant increases of insulin resistance. There was no difference in change of glucose, insulin levels and insulin resistance before and after GH treatment between two groups of body mass indices(BMI) of 2525. There also was no significant difference between two groups of with and without family histories of diabetes mellitus (DM). There was no case of newly developed impaired glucose tolerance, fasting glucose tolerance, nor newly developed DM. CONCLUSION: GH treatment with doses of 0.6-0.7 IU/kg/week for mean 9.6 months in patients with ISS did not show any significant changes in blood glucose levels during OGTT. However, GH treatments induced considerably higher fasting insulin levels compared to pretreatment, resulting in statistically higher insulin resistance. Higher BMI and family history of DM did not induce any significant changes in glucose, insulin level and insulin resistance after GH treatment than the other groups.

A Case of Proximal Renal Tubular Acidosis Accompanied by Vitamin D Deficient Rickets

In the clinical state of vitamin D deficiency, it is possible that associated phosphate depletion, parathyroid hormone excess, and hypocalcemia may all depress the proximal tubular reabsorption of bicarbonate, in addition to abnormal skeletal modeling or remodeling. Although nutritional rickets is considered a rare disease in developed countries nowadays, cases of vitamin D deficient rickets caused by various unhealthy lifestyles such as insufficient exposure to sunlight, breast feeding infants without giving vitamin D supplements, unbalanced vegetarian diets of breast feeding mothers, low-birth weight, and maternal deficiency of vitamin D or calcium are increasing. Here, we present the case of an 8 month old girl, who was completely breastfed without any weaning diet or infant vitamin supplements. She visited our emergency room with hypocalcemic seizure and subsequently was diagnosed with vitamin D deficient rickets accompanied by overt bone changes and proximal renal tubular acidosis. After intravenous(IV) and oral calcium replacement therapy(IV calcium gluconate injection 1 mEq/kg/day for 6 days, 2 mEq/kg/day for 4 days followed by oral calcium gluconate administration 4 g/day for 3 days) with vitamin D supplement(Alfacalcidol 0.5 mcg/day) during admission, serum calcium level was normalized with clinical improvement. Oral sodium bicarbonate(0.6 g/day) was administered from the 2nd hospital day for 2 weeks, which normalized the serum bicarbonate(measured by tCO2) level. Calcium and vitamin D replacement were continued for 2 weeks and 3 months each. After discontinuing medications, follow up laboratory findings showed good maintenance of serum calcium, alkaline phosphate and bicarbonate levels with complete improvement of bone X-ray findings.