Alternating Hemiplegia of Childhood: gastrointestinal manifestations and correlation with neurological impairments

Table 1 Gastrointestinal symptoms and procedures in our cohort

Symptoms
Upper Gastrointestinal Symptoms	Number of Patients Per Symptom
Dysphagia	26
Vomiting	26
Weight Loss/Failure to Thrive/Anorexia	19
Nausea	15
Sialorrhea	8
Lower Gastrointestinal Symptoms	Number of Patients Per Symptom
Constipation	27^a
Diarrhea	18^a
Abdominal Pain	9^b
Procedures
Type of Procedure	Number of Patients with Abnormal Results/Total Number of Patients Undergoing the Test (% of patients)
Video Fluoroscopic Swallow Study	10/10 (100%)
Upper Endoscopy	2/7 (28.5%)
Nuclear Medicine Gastric Emptying Study	4/5 (80%)
Upper GI X-Ray Series	0/4 (0%)
Abdominal Ultrasound	0/2 (0%)
Colonoscopy w/ Biopsy	0/2 (0%)
Upright Modified Barium Swallow Study	1/1 (100%)
CT Abdomen	1/1 (100%)^c
Anorectal Manometry	0/1 (0%)

^a33/41 patients with gastrointestinal symptoms exhibited either constipation or diarrhea. Of these 33 patients, 12 had both constipation and diarrhea manifesting as alternating episodes, 6 had only diarrhea, and 15 had only constipation
^b In most patients, it was not possible to definitely localize the pain to the upper or lower abdomen, due to their limited ability to communicate
^cCT scan showed changes indicative of constipation

ISSN: 1750-1172