Articles

Development and content validation of a symptom assessment for eosinophilic gastritis and eosinophilic gastroenteritis in adults and adolescents

A patient reported outcome (PRO) instrument with evidence of validity and reliability for assessing symptoms of eosinophilic gastritis (EG) and eosinophilic gastroenteritis (EGE) is needed to measure treatment...

Authors: Calvin N. Ho, Sean O’Quinn, Julie Bailey, Oren Meyers, Ashley F. Slagle, Evan S. Dellon and Catherine Datto

Potentials and current shortcomings in the cooperation between German centers for rare diseases and primary care physicians: results from the project TRANSLATE-NAMSE

The TRANSLATE-NAMSE project with the strengthening of the centers for rare diseases with their affiliation to the European Reference Networks was a major step towards the implementation of the German National ...

Authors: D. Druschke, F. Krause, G. Müller, J. Scharfe, G. F. Hoffmann and J. Schmitt

Clinics and genetic background of hereditary gingival fibromatosis

Hereditary gingival fibromatosis (HGF) is a rare condition characterized by slowly progressive overgrowth of the gingiva. The severity of overgrowth may differ from mild causing phonetic and masticatory issues...

Authors: Karolina Strzelec, Agata Dziedzic, Katarzyna Łazarz-Bartyzel, Aleksander M. Grabiec, Ewa Gutmajster, Tomasz Kaczmarzyk, Paweł Plakwicz and Katarzyna Gawron

Randomized and non-randomized designs for causal inference with longitudinal data in rare disorders

In the United States, approximately 7000 rare diseases affect 30 million patients, and only 10% of these diseases have existing therapies. Sound study design and causal inference methods are essential to demon...

Authors: Rima Izem and Robert McCarter

Is the combination of bilateral pulmonary nodules and mosaic attenuation on chest CT specific for DIPNECH?

Diffuse idiopathic pulmonary neuroendocrine cell hyperplasia (DIPNECH) is characterized by multifocal proliferation of pulmonary neuroendocrine cells. On chest CT, DIPNECH exhibits bilateral pulmonary nodules ...

Authors: Bilal F. Samhouri, Chi Wan Koo, Eunhee S. Yi and Jay H. Ryu

Optic pathway glioma and the sex association in neurofibromatosis type 1: a single-center study

Low-grade optic pathway glioma (OPG) develops in 15–20% of children with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1). OPGs are symptomatic in 30–50% and one-third of these require treatment. A few studies have suggested fe...

Authors: Anne Munk Henning, Mette Møller Handrup, Sia Mariann Kjeldsen, Dorte Ancher Larsen and Cecilie Ejerskov

The development of early social cognitive skills in neurogenetic syndromes associated with autism: Cornelia de Lange, fragile X and Rubinstein–Taybi syndromes

Cornelia de Lange (CdLS), Fragile X (FXS) and Rubinstein–Taybi syndromes (RTS) evidence unique profiles of autistic characteristics. To delineate these profiles further, the development of early social cogniti...

Authors: Katherine Ellis, Jo Moss, Chrysi Stefanidou, Chris Oliver and Ian Apperly

Measuring Duchenne muscular dystrophy impact: development of a proxy-reported measure derived from PROMIS item banks

Person-reported outcomes measurement development for rare diseases has lagged behind that of more common diseases. In studies of caregivers of patients with rare diseases, one relies on proxy report to charact...

Authors: Carolyn E. Schwartz, Roland B. Stark, David Cella, Katrina Borowiec, Katherine L. Gooch and Ivana F. Audhya

Music therapy and Sanfilippo syndrome: an analysis of psychological and physiological variables of three case studies

Mucopolysaccharidosis type III (MPS III) or Sanfilippo syndrome is a neurodegenerative disease caused by the accumulation of mucopolysaccharides in the body. As the symptoms are wide ranging, it is a challenge...

Authors: P. Pérez-Núñez, E. Lázaro, I. Amayra, J. F. López-Paz, P. Caballero, O. Martínez, M. Pérez, S. Berrocoso, M. Al-Rashaida, M. García, A. A. Rodríguez and P. M. Luna

Retinal vessel tortuosity as a prognostic marker for disease severity in Fabry disease

The aim of this case control study was to evaluate the prognostic value of automatically quantified retinal vessel tortuosity from fundus images and vessel density from OCT-A in Fabry disease and to evaluate t...

Authors: Yevgeniya Atiskova, Jan Wildner, Martin Stephan Spitzer, Charlotte Aries, Nicole Muschol and Simon Dulz

In vitro functional rescue by ivacaftor of an ABCB11 variant involved in PFIC2 and intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy

ABCB11 variations are responsible for a spectrum of rare liver diseases, including progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis type 2 (PFIC2) and intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP). Current medical tre...

Authors: Elodie Mareux, Martine Lapalus, Amel Ben-Saad, Isabelle Callebaut, Thomas Falguières, Emmanuel Gonzales and Emmanuel Jacquemin

Scientific evidence based rare disease research discovery with research funding data in knowledge graph

Limited knowledge and unclear underlying biology of many rare diseases pose significant challenges to patients, clinicians, and scientists. To address these challenges, there is an urgent need to inspire and e...

Authors: Qian Zhu, Ðắc-Trung Nguyễn, Timothy Sheils, Gioconda Alyea, Eric Sid, Yanji Xu, James Dickens, Ewy A. Mathé and Anne Pariser

International consensus on clinical severity scale use in evaluating Niemann–Pick disease Type C in paediatric and adult patients: results from a Delphi Study

Several scales have been developed in the past two decades to evaluate Niemann–Pick disease Type C (NPC) severity in clinical practice and trials. However, a lack of clarity concerning which scale to use in ea...

Authors: William Evans, Marc Patterson, Frances Platt, Christina Guldberg, Toni Mathieson and Jessica Pacey

NeoSeq: a new method of genomic sequencing for newborn screening

To explore the clinical application of NeoSeq in newborn screening.

Authors: Huaiyan Wang, Yuqi Yang, Lingna Zhou, Yu Wang, Wei Long and Bin Yu

Identification and treatment of primary cervical gestational trophoblastic neoplasia: a retrospective study of 13 patients and literature review

Primary cervical gestational trophoblastic neoplasias (GTNs) are extremely rare ectopic GTNs. Such lesions are difficult to diagnose clinically because of their rarity, with abnormal vaginal bleeding of a non-...

Authors: Xiaoyu Wang, Junjun Yang, Xirun Wan, Fengzhi Feng, Jun Zhao, Tong Ren and Yang Xiang

Extranodal natural killer/T-cell lymphoma of the breast: a retrospective clinicopathological analysis of a consecutive 11-year case series

Extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma of the breast (ENKTL-Breast) is rarely detected in clinical practice, and its clinicopathological features remain unclear.

Authors: Wei Liu, Zihang Chen, Fanglan Li, Wenyan Zhang, Weiping Liu and Sha Zhao

Predictors of heart failure symptoms in hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia patients with hepatic arteriovenous malformations

Hepatic arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) in hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) patients are most commonly hepatic artery to hepatic venous shunts which can result in high-output heart failure. This ...

Authors: Lucas R. Cusumano, Joseph A. Tesoriero, Craig B. Wilsen, James Sayre, Matthew Quirk and Justin P. McWilliams

Preventing maternal phenylketonuria (PKU) syndrome: important factors to achieve good metabolic control throughout pregnancy

Insufficient metabolic control during pregnancy of mothers with phenylketonuria (PKU) leads to maternal PKU syndrome, a severe embryo-/fetopathy. Since maintaining or reintroducing the strict phenylalanine (Ph...

Authors: Carmen Rohde, Alena Gerlinde Thiele, Christoph Baerwald, Rudolf Georg Ascherl, Dinah Lier, Ulrike Och, Christina Heller, Alexandra Jung, Kathrin Schönherr, Monika Joerg-Streller, Simone Luttat, Sabine Matzgen, Tina Winkler, Stefanie Rosenbaum-Fabian, Oxana Joos and Skadi Beblo

Italian national consensus statement on management and pharmacological treatment of phenylketonuria

Phenylketonuria (PKU) is a rare inherited metabolic disorder caused by defects in the phenylalanine-hydroxylase gene (PAH), the enzyme catalyzing the conversion of phenylalanine to tyrosine. PAH impairment cau...

Authors: Alberto Burlina, Giacomo Biasucci, Maria Teresa Carbone, Chiara Cazzorla, Sabrina Paci, Francesca Pochiero, Marco Spada, Albina Tummolo, Juri Zuvadelli and Vincenzo Leuzzi

Improving phenylalanine and micronutrients status of children with phenylketonuria: a pilot randomized study

Children with Phenylketonuria (PKU) need a special diet to avoid a variety of physical and psychological complications. The aim of this study was to compare and assess the effects of two interventions on and l...

Authors: Reza Zamani, Akram Karimi-Shahanjarini, Leili Tapak and Babak Moeini

An Integrated clinical pathway for diagnosis, treatment and care of rare diseases: model, operating procedures, and results of the project TRANSLATE-NAMSE funded by the German Federal Joint Committee

Diagnosis, treatment, and care of patients with rare diseases require multidisciplinary cooperation between medical and paramedical specialities and with patients and families. Innovative genetic diagnostics, ...

Authors: Daniela Choukair, Fabian Hauck, Markus Bettendorf, Heiko Krude, Christoph Klein, Tobias Bäumer, Reinhard Berner, Min Ae Lee-Kirsch, Corinna Grasemann, Peter Burgard and Georg F. Hoffmann

Impact of low-dose calcipotriol ointment on wound healing, pruritus and pain in patients with dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

Wound management is a critical factor when treating patients with the inherited skin fragility disease dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (DEB). Due to genetic defects in structural proteins, skin and mucous epi...

Authors: Christina Guttmann-Gruber, Josefina Piñón Hofbauer, Birgit Tockner, Victoria Reichl, Alfred Klausegger, Peter Hofbauer, Martin Wolkersdorfer, Khek-Chian Tham, Seong Soo Lim, John E. Common, Anja Diem, Katharina Ude-Schoder, Wolfgang Hitzl, Florian Lagler, Julia Reichelt, Johann W. Bauer…

Williams syndrome: on the role of intellectual abilities in anxiety

Individuals with Williams syndrome (WS) have an elevated risk for anxiety disorders throughout the life span, making it a research priority to identify the individual factors associated with anxiety. Most of t...

Authors: Charlotte Willfors, Deborah M. Riby, Marcus van der Poll, Katja Ekholm, Hanna Avdic Björlin, Johan Lundin Kleberg and Ann Nordgren

Co-existing of craniofacial fibrous dysplasia and cerebrovascular diseases: a series of 22 cases and review of the literature

Craniofacial fibrous dysplasia is a fairly rare condition. Some literature have reported a few patients with craniofacial fibrous dysplasia suffering from vascular abnormalities. This study aimed to describe t...

Authors: Xiaowen Song and Zhi Li

The Italian National Registry for FSHD: an enhanced data integration and an analytics framework towards Smart Health Care and Precision Medicine for a rare disease

The Italian Clinical network for FSHD (ICNF) has established the Italian National Registry for FSHD (INRF), collecting data from patients affected by Facioscapulohumeral dystrophy (FSHD) and their relatives. The ...

Authors: Cinzia Bettio, Valentina Salsi, Mirko Orsini, Enrico Calanchi, Luca Magnotta, Luca Gagliardelli, June Kinoshita, Sonia Bergamaschi and Rossella Tupler

Age at diagnosis in patients with chronic congenital endocrine conditions: a regional cohort study from a reference center for rare diseases

For chronic congenital endocrine conditions, age at diagnosis is a key issue with implications for optimal management and psychological concerns. These conditions are associated with an increase in the risk of...

Authors: Wafa Kallali, Claude Messiaen, Roumaisah Saïdi, Soucounda Lessim, Magali Viaud, Jerome Dulon, Mariana Nedelcu, Dinane Samara, Muriel Houang, Bruno Donadille, Carine Courtillot, GianPaolo de Filippo, Jean-Claude Carel, Sophie Christin-Maitre, Philippe Touraine, Irene Netchine…

Hearing loss in Norwegian adults with achondroplasia

Achondroplasia is the most common form of disproportionate skeletal dysplasia. The condition is caused by a mutation in the FGFR3 gene, affecting endochondral bone growth, including the craniofacial anatomy. Recu...

Authors: Svein O. Fredwall, Björn Åberg, Hanne Berdal, Ravi Savarirayan and Jorunn Solheim

Genetic pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment of short-chain 3-hydroxyacyl-coenzyme A dehydrogenase hyperinsulinism

Congenital hyperinsulinism (CHI), a major cause of persistent and recurrent hypoglycemia in infancy and childhood. Numerous pathogenic genes have been associated with 14 known genetic subtypes of CHI. Adenosin...

Authors: Wei Zhang and Yan-Mei Sang

Reduced risk of recurrent pneumothorax for sirolimus therapy after surgical pleural covering of entire lung in lymphangioleiomyomatosis

Patients with lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM) frequently experience pneumothorax. Although sirolimus is the standard therapy for LAM, its effect on pneumothorax is controversial. Recently, total pleural coverin...

Authors: Teiko Sakurai, Toru Arai, Masaki Hirose, Kensuke Kojima, Tetsuki Sakamoto, Yoshinobu Matsuda, Chikatoshi Sugimoto, Hyung-Eun Yoon and Yoshikazu Inoue

GLRX5-associated [Fe-S] cluster biogenesis disorder: further characterisation of the neurological phenotype and long-term outcome

Identification and characterisation of monogenic causes of complex neurological phenotypes are important for genetic counselling and prognostication. Bi-allelic pathogenic variants in the gene encoding GLRX5, ...

Authors: Bindu Parayil Sankaran, Sachin Gupta, Michel Tchan, Beena Devanapalli, Yusof Rahman, Peter Procopis and Kaustuv Bhattacharya

Clinical features and health-related quality of life in adult patients with mucopolysaccharidosis IVA: the Spanish experience

Mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS) IVA or Morquio A syndrome is a progressive and disabling disease characterized by a deficiency of the enzyme N-acetylgalactosamine-6-sulphate sulphatase. Its clinical presentation is v...

Authors: Pilar Quijada-Fraile, Elena Arranz Canales, Elena Martín-Hernández, María Juliana Ballesta-Martínez, Encarna Guillén-Navarro, Guillem Pintos-Morell, Marc Moltó-Abad, David Moreno-Martínez, Salvador García Morillo, Javier Blasco-Alonso, María Luz Couce, Ricardo Gil Sánchez, Elisenda Cortès-Saladelafont, Mónica A. López Rodríguez, María Teresa García-Silva and Montserrat Morales Conejo

Patients’ priorities and expectations on an EU registry for rare bone and mineral conditions

Understanding the natural history of rare bone and mineral conditions is essential for improving clinical practice and the development of new diagnostics and therapeutics. Recruitment and long-term participati...

Authors: Muhammad Kassim Javaid, Marina Mordenti, Manila Boarini, Luca Sangiorgi, Ingunn Westerheim, Inês Alves, Rebecca Tvedt Skarberg, Natasha M. Appelman-Dijkstra and Corinna Grasemann

Alterations in brain morphology by MRI in adults with neurofibromatosis 1

Neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1) is a rare autosomal dominant disease that causes the dysregulated growth of Schwann cells. Most reported studies of brain morphology in NF1 patients have included only children, and c...

Authors: Su Wang, Victor-Felix Mautner, Ralph Buchert, Stephane Flibotte, Per Suppa, Jan M. Friedman and Manraj K. S. Heran

Clinical and molecular spectrum of P/Q type calcium channel Cav2.1 in epileptic patients

Epilepsy is a neurological disorder characterized by the potential to induce seizure and accompanied by cognitive, psychological, and social consequences. CACNA1A gene is a voltage-gated P/Q-type Cav2.1 channel t...

Authors: Elham Alehabib, Zahra Esmaeilizadeh, Sakineh Ranji-Burachaloo, Abbas Tafakhori, Hossein Darvish and Abolfazl Movafagh

A systematic literature review of frequency of vaso-occlusive crises in sickle cell disease

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a collection of rare inherited blood disorders affecting approximately 100,000 people in the U.S. and 20–25 million people globally. Individuals with SCD experience recurrent episo...

Authors: Ahmar U. Zaidi, Alexander K. Glaros, Soyon Lee, Taiji Wang, Rhea Bhojwani, Eric Morris, Breanne Donohue, Jincy Paulose, Şerban R. Iorga and Dave Nellesen

Correction to: Clinical features and treatment efficacy for IgG4-related thyroiditis

Authors: Xinxin Han, Panpan Zhang, Jieqiong Li, Zheng Liu, Hui Lu, Xuan Luo, Boju Pan, Xiaolan Lian, Xuejun Zeng, Wen Zhang and Xiaofeng Zeng

High rate of autonomic neuropathy in Cornelia de Lange Syndrome

Cornelia de Lange Syndrome (CdLS) is a rare congenital disorder characterized by typical facial features, growth failure, limb abnormalities, and gastroesophageal dysfunction that may be caused by mutations in...

Authors: M. J. Pablo, P. Pamplona, M. Haddad, I. Benavente, A. Latorre-Pellicer, M. Arnedo, L. Trujillano, G. Bueno-Lozano, L. M. Kerr, S. A. Huisman, F. J. Kaiser, F. Ramos, A. D. Kline, J. Pie and B. Puisac

Development of the Myasthenia Gravis (MG) Symptoms PRO: a case study of a patient-centred outcome measure in rare disease

Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a chronic autoimmune neuromuscular disease, characterised by fluctuating muscle weakness which makes it challenging to assess symptom severity. Mixed methods psychometrics (MMP), whic...

Authors: Sophie Cleanthous, Ann-Christin Mork, Antoine Regnault, Stefan Cano, Henry J. Kaminski and Thomas Morel

Evaluation of the long-term treatment effects of intravenous idursulfase in patients with mucopolysaccharidosis II (MPS II) using statistical modeling: data from the Hunter Outcome Survey (HOS)

Mucopolysaccharidosis II (MPS II; Hunter syndrome) is a rare, life-limiting lysosomal storage disease caused by deficient iduronate-2-sulfatase activity. Enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) with intravenous (IV) ...

Authors: Joseph Muenzer, Jaco Botha, Paul Harmatz, Roberto Giugliani, Christoph Kampmann and Barbara K. Burton

Determining oncogenic patterns and cancer predisposition through the transcriptomic profile in Mitchell–Riley syndrome with heterotopic gastric mucosa and duodenal atresia: a case report

Homozygous mutations in the transcription factor RFX6 are the cause of the Mitchell–Riley syndrome (MRS) associating neonatal diabetes, congenital digestive system, such as biliary atresia, pancreatic hypoplasia,...

Authors: Valeria Calcaterra, Luigi Chiricosta, Emanuela Mazzon, Agnese Gugnandolo, Daniele Alberti, Luciano Maestri, Milena Meroni, Elettra Vestri, Elvira Verduci, Dario Dilillo, Gianvincenzo Zuccotti and Gloria Pelizzo

RaDiCo, the French national research program on rare disease cohorts

Rare diseases (RDs) affect nearly 3 million people in France and at least 26–30 million people in Europe. These diseases, which represent a major medical concern, are mainly of genetic origin, often chronic, p...

Authors: Serge Amselem, Sonia Gueguen, Jérôme Weinbach, Annick Clement and Paul Landais

The role of estrogen deprivation therapy in premenopausal women with primary unresectable intracardiac leiomyomatosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Intracardiac leiomyomatosis (ICLM) is a rare life-threatening form of intravenous leiomyomatosis (IVLM). The incomplete resection and recurrence are associated with high morbidity and mortality. The objective ...

Authors: Jinxiao Liang, Ruilin Lei, Mingwei Xie, Shaodan Lin, Jing Xu, Xiaoting Ling and Qingsheng Xie

Prevalence of low alkaline phosphatase activity in laboratory assessment: Is hypophosphatasia an underdiagnosed disease?

Tissue-nonspecific alkaline phosphatase (TNSALP) encoded by the ALPL gene is of particular importance for bone mineralization. Mutation in the ALPL gene can lead to persistent low ALP activity resulting in the...

Authors: Tobias Schmidt, Constantin Schmidt, Michael Amling, Jan Kramer and Florian Barvencik

Correction to: Potential markers for sample size estimations in hereditary spastic paraplegia type 5

Authors: Qianqian Lin, Ying Liu, Zhixian Ye, Jianping Hu, Wenjie Cai, Qiang Weng, Wan-Jin Chen, Ning Wang, Dairong Cao, Yi Lin and Ying Fu

A multicenter cross-sectional French study of the impact of COVID-19 on neuromuscular diseases

Due to their health condition, patients with neuromuscular diseases (NMD) are at greater risk of developing serious complications with COVID-19. The objective of this study was to analyze the prevalence of COV...

Authors: Lucie Isoline Pisella, Sara Fernandes, Guilhem Solé, Tanya Stojkovic, Céline Tard, Jean-Baptiste Chanson, Françoise Bouhour, Emmanuelle Salort-Campana, Guillemette Beaudonnet, Louise Debergé, Fanny Duval, Aude-Marie Grapperon, Marion Masingue, Aleksandra Nadaj-Pakleza, Yann Péréon, Frédérique Audic…

Patient engagement in the design of clinical research in Noonan syndrome spectrum disorders: a scoping review

Noonan syndrome spectrum disorders are a group of disorders caused by mutations in several genes of the RAS/MAPK pathway. Because of a highly heterogeneity and variable phenotypical manifestations of the disor...

Authors: Dagmar K. Tiemens, Jacqueline Nugteren, Erika Leenders, Ellen Wingbermühle, Carina A. C. M. Pittens and Jos M. Th. Draaisma

Hearing problems in patients with hereditary gelsolin amyloidosis

Gelsolin amyloidosis (AGel amyloidosis) is a hereditary form of systemic amyloidosis featuring ophthalmological, neurological and cutaneous symptoms. Previous studies based mainly on patients’ self-reporting h...

Authors: Tuuli Mustonen, Ville Sivonen, Sari Atula, Sari Kiuru-Enari and Saku T. Sinkkonen

Multivariate data analysis identifies natural clusters of Tuberous Sclerosis Complex Associated Neuropsychiatric Disorders (TAND)

Tuberous Sclerosis Complex (TSC), a multi-system genetic disorder, is associated with a wide range of TSC-Associated Neuropsychiatric Disorders (TAND). Individuals have apparently unique TAND profiles, challengin...

Authors: Petrus J. de Vries, Loren Leclezio, Sugnet Gardner-Lubbe, Darcy Krueger, Mustafa Sahin, Steven Sparagana, Liesbeth De Waele and Anna Jansen

Development of therapies for rare genetic disorders of GPX4: roadmap and opportunities

Extremely rare progressive diseases like Sedaghatian-type Spondylometaphyseal Dysplasia (SSMD) can be neonatally lethal and therefore go undiagnosed or are difficult to treat. Recent sequencing efforts have li...

Authors: Dorian M. Cheff, Alysson R. Muotri, Brent R. Stockwell, Edward E. Schmidt, Qitao Ran, Reena V. Kartha, Simon C. Johnson, Plavi Mittal, Elias S. J. Arnér, Kristen M. Wigby, Matthew D. Hall and Sanath Kumar Ramesh

Description of the molecular and clinical characteristics of the mucopolysaccharidosis type VII Iberian cohort

Mucopolysaccharidosis type VII (Sly syndrome) is an ultra-rare neurometabolic disorder caused by inherited deficiency of the lysosomal enzyme β-glucuronidase. Precise data regarding its epidemiology are scarce...

Authors: Antonio Gónzalez-Meneses, Mercè Pineda, Anabela Bandeira, Patrícia Janeiro, María Ángeles Ruiz, Luisa Diogo and Ramón Cancho-Candela