Long-term therapy with 1alpha-hydroxyvitamin D3 in children with 'pseudo-deficiency' rickets.

This investigation confirms that 1alpha-hydroxyvitamin D3 (1alpha-OHD3) is a potent drug for the treatment of patients with pseudo-deficiency rickets (Balsan et al., 1975a; Reade et al., 1975; Prader et al., 1976). 1alpha-OHD3 corrects their intestinal malabsorption of calcium and phosphorus, normalizes their serum calcium and phosphate concentrations and promotes healing of skeletal lesions. This study also shows differences in the needs for 1alpha-OHD3 of children with PDR. Three factors appear to be of importance: familial sensitivity, severity of chronic secondary hyperparathyroidism, and periods of increased growth velocity. Tolerance to long-term 1alpha-OHD3 therapy, at doses varying from 0.5 to 2 microgram/d is excellent. Surveillance of patients should include regular measurements of 24 h urinary excretion of calcium, since hypercalciuria is the first signal of overdosage.

[Familial hemolytic-uremic syndrome with normal renal biopsy]. / Syndrome hemolytique et uremique familial avec biopsie renale normale

Five children from 3 different families, presented several attacks of hemolytic-uremic syndrome with peculiar features:--in 4/5 children the disease was familial; 4 presented 2 attacks, the 5th 3 attacks, separated by several months or years of time-interval;--the "bouts" were constantly marked by the initial high level of reticulocytes, rapid recovery of hematuria, renal failure and thrombocytopenia;--overall, repeated biopsies of the kidney never showed any lesion of the basement membrane of the glomerular capillaries or of the arteriolar walls leading to the diagnosis of thrombotic microangiopathy;--all etiological enquiries to precise the cause of chronic hemolysis were negative.