Congenital Heart Disease Revealing Familial 22q11 Deletion Syndrome

Abstract Congenital heart defects are the most common birth defects and the leading cause of mortality in the first year of life. It is well known that the 22q11 deletion syndrome (22q11DS) is the most common microdeletion syndrome in humans and that congenial heart diseases (CHDs) are one of the most common phenotypic manifestations. However, it should be noted that the 22q11 deletion was also found in a significant number of patients with isolated CHD. The 22q11DS phenotype may include cardiovascular anomalies, palatal abnormalities, nasal voice, immune deficiency, endocrine dysfunctions, a varying degree of cognitive deficits and intellectual disabilities, velopharyngeal insufficiency, and characteristic craniofacial dysmorphism. This condition affects about 1 in 4,000 live births, making 22q11DS the most common microdeletion syndrome in humans. Here we describe the cases of three children who were referred to the clinical hospital center with the diagnosis of CHD, but with no direct signs of 22q11DS. Investigation of familial data led us to suspect that the mothers could be carriers of 22q11DS. The multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) testing confirmed that the patients and mothers exhibited 3 Mb 22q11 deletions, which justified the clinical signs in the mothers and the CHD in children. In the presence of a few characteristics that are common of a spectrum of some known syndromes, a familial examination can provide clues to a definitive diagnosis, as well as to the prevention of diseases and genetic counseling of these patients.

Consideraciones anestésicas en pacientes con microdeleción del cromosoma 22q11 / Anesthetic issues in patients mycrodeletion syndrome produced by the deletion of chromosome 22q11

The syndrome produced by the deletion of chromosome 22q11 corresponds to a pattern of anomalies that occurs when a specific region of chromosome 22 is lost, specifically called 22q11.2. This microdeletion corresponds to the most frequent chromosomal alteration in humans, which has a prevalence of 1 per 4,000 live births. This includes a great variety of phenotypes, many of them subclinical, among which the Di George syndrome and the Velocardiofacial syndrome stand out. The main cause of mortality is of cardiac origin. Embryologically, this microdeletion is associated with alterations in the differentiation and migration of the pharyngeal system, with consequent craniofacial, cardiac, airway, thymus and parathyroid alterations, among others. In this sense, these patients present a higher risk of complications such as inmunodeficiency, hypocalcemia and hemorrhagic risk. From the surgical and anesthetic point of view, they can present cardiopathies of greater complexity of correction, which in some cases is also related to anatomical airway alterations which can constitute an important challenge when operating this type of patients. Considering the above, there is an increase in perioperative risk which could increase mortality. The objective of this review is to present the characteristics and behavior of this group of patients in the correction of their heart diseases, so that they are known by the anesthesiologists who work in the cardiovascular area.

El síndrome de microdeleción 22q11 corresponde a un patrón de anomalías que se produce al perderse una región específica del cromosoma 22, específicamente llamada 22q11.2. Esta microdeleción corresponde a la alteración genética más frecuente en humanos la cual tiene una prevalencia de 1 cada 4.000 recién nacidos vivos. Incluye una gran variedad de fenotipos, muchos de ellos subclínicos, entre los que destaca el síndrome Di George y el síndrome Velocardiofacial. La principal causa de mortalidad es de origen cardíaco. Embriológicamente la microdeleción se asocia a alteraciones en diferenciación y migración del aparato faríngeo, con las consiguientes alteraciones cráneo-faciales, cardíacas, de vía aérea, timo y paratiroides, entre otras. En ese sentido, presentan mayor frecuencia de complicaciones tales como infecciones, hipocalcemia y riesgo hemorrágico. Desde el punto de vista quirúrgico y anestésico pueden presentar cardiopatías de mayor complejidad de corrección, asociado o no a alteraciones anatómicas en vía aérea lo que puede constituir un importante desafío al momento de intervenir. Lo anterior aumenta el riesgo perioperatorio, lo que podría derivar en aumento de la mortalidad. El objetivo de esta revisión es presentar las características y comportamiento de este grupo de pacientes en la corrección de sus cardiopatías, de modo que sean un aporte para los anestesiólogos que se desempeñan en el área cardiovascular.