A novel RNASEH2B splice site mutation responsible for Aicardi-Goutieres syndrome in the Faroe Islands.

Aim: The aim of the study was to identify the genetic background for Aicardi-Goutieres syndrome (AGS) in the Faroe Islands.

Methods: Four patients with AGS were identified. The patients had a variable phenotype, from a severe prenatal form with intrauterine foetal death to a milder phenotype, albeit still with an early onset, within the first 2-3 months.

A 17q21.31 microduplication, reciprocal to the newly described 17q21.31 microdeletion, in a girl with severe psychomotor developmental delay and dysmorphic craniofacial features.

Array-CGH analysis using 244k Agilent oligoarray revealed a de novo 17q21.31 microduplication in a 10-year-old girl with severe psychomotor developmental delay, facial dysmorphism, microcephaly, abnormal digits and hirsutism. The duplication encompassed the MAPT and CRHR1 genes and was reciprocal to the recently described 17q21.

Mitochondrial encephalomyopathy with elevated methylmalonic acid is caused by SUCLA2 mutations.

We have identified 12 patients with autosomal recessive mitochondrial encephalomyopathy with elevated methylmalonic acid. The disorder has a high incidence of 1 in 1700 in the Faroe Islands due to a founder effect, and a carrier frequency of 1 in 33. The symptoms comprise hypotonia, muscle atrophy, hyperkinesia, severe hearing impairment and postnatal growth retardation.

Hypertrichosis in patients with SURF1 mutations.

We present three patients with SURF1 mutations. In addition to Leigh syndrome all patients had hypertrichosis, a clinical sign that is not usually associated with Leigh syndrome. The hypertrichosis was not congenital and it was mainly distributed on the extremities and forehead.

Cerebral folate deficiency: life-changing supplementation with folinic acid.

Cerebral folate deficiency is characterized by low cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) concentrations of 5-methyltetrahydrofolate and a broad spectrum of clinical signs and symptoms. A patient with progressive spasticity, gait disturbance, speech difficulties, initially diagnosed as a recessive spastic paraplegia recovered on folinic acid (15-30 mg/day) and her 5-methyltetrahydrofolate in CSF normalized. This report demonstrates the importance of CSF investigation in the diagnosis of cerebral folate deficiency and efficiency of folinic acid (5-formyltetrahydrofolate) supplementation.

[Intrathecal baclofen in the treatment of severe spastic tetraplegia and dystonia in children and adolescents].

Introduction: Continuous intrathecal baclofen has been used over the past years especially in adult patients with spasticity of spinal origin. Children and young adults with severe spasticity and dystonia of cerebral origin are difficult to treat in spite of optimal systemic antispasmotic therapy with baclofen, tizanidine, dantrolene and/or diazepam. Intrathecal baclofen has therefore been applied in a group of young patients.

Threshold electrical stimulation (TES) in ambulant children with CP: a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial.

A randomized double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial was carried out to determine whether a group of stable children with cerebral palsy (36 males, 21 females; mean age 10 years 11 months, range 5 to 18 years) would improve their motor skills after 12 months of threshold electrical stimulation (TES). Two thirds received active and one third received inactive stimulators. For the primary outcome we constructed a set of plausible motor function tests and studied the change in summary indices of the performance measurements.