Assessment of gene-disease associations and recommendations for genetic testing for somatic variants in vascular anomalies by VASCERN-VASCA.

Background: Vascular anomalies caused by somatic (postzygotic) variants are clinically and genetically heterogeneous diseases with overlapping or distinct entities. The genetic knowledge in this field is rapidly growing, and genetic testing is now part of the diagnostic workup alongside the clinical, radiological and histopathological data. Nonetheless, access to genetic testing is still limited, and there is significant heterogeneity across the approaches used by the diagnostic laboratories, with direct consequences on test sensitivity and accuracy.

Bilateral lung transplantation for pediatric pulmonary arterial hypertension: perioperative management and one-year follow-up.

Background: Bilateral lung transplantation (LuTx) remains the only established treatment for children with end-stage pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Although PAH is the second most common indication for LuTx, little is known about optimal perioperative management and midterm clinical outcomes.

Methods: Prospective observational study on consecutive children with PAH who underwent LuTx with scheduled postoperative VA-ECMO support at Hannover Medical School from December 2013 to June 2020.

Anterior Spinal Artery Syndrome Due to Fibrocartilaginous Embolism-Case Report and Treatment Options.

Acute occlusion of the anterior spinal artery and subsequent spinal ischemic infarction leads to anterior spinal artery syndrome characterized by back pain and bilateral flaccid paresis with loss of protopathic sensibility. As a rare cause fibrocartilaginous embolism has been described and is associated with sports or unusual strain.Following gymnastic exercise the day before symptom-onset, a 11 years old girl presented with neck pain, paresis of arms and legs, and impaired deep tendon reflexes.

Acquired von Willebrand syndrome (AVWS) type 2, characterized by decreased high molecular weight multimers, is common in children with severe pulmonary hypertension (PH).

Background And Objectives: Emerging evidence suggests that increased degradation of von Willebrand factor and decrease in high molecular weight multimers occurs in patients with pulmonary hypertension (PH). However, the link between acquired von Willebrand Syndrome (AVWS) type 2 and PH remains poorly understood.

Material And Methods: We retrospectively evaluated the charts of 20 children with PH who underwent bilateral lung transplantation (LuTx) between 2013 and 2022.

Integration of genomic analysis and transcript expression of ABCC8 and KCNJ11 in focal form of congenital hyperinsulinism.

Background: The focal form of CHI is caused by an autosomal recessive pathogenic variant affecting the paternal homologue of genes or and a second somatic event specifically occurring in the affected islet of Langerhans. The approach of this study was to integrate the genetic changes occurring in pancreatic focal lesions of CHI at the genomic and transcriptional level.

Research Design And Methods: Patients receiving therapeutic surgery and with proven or pathogenic variants were selected and analyzed for loss of heterozygosity (LOH), changes in copy number and uniparental disomy (UPD) on the short am of chromosome 11 by molecular microarray analysis and methylation-specific MLPA.

Recurrent Mandibular Giant Cell Lesion in Neurofibromatosis Type 1: Second Hit Mutation on the Gene in the Osseous Lesion.

Background/aim: In the autosomal dominant hereditary disease neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), lesions of the jaw develop in isolated cases, which are diagnosed as central giant cell granuloma (CGCG). This study aimed to clarify the genetic basis of a bone lesion in a syndromic patient.

Case Report: The NF1 patient had developed a CGCG that recurred after local excision.

A Case Report: First Long-Term Treatment With Burosumab in a Patient With Cutaneous-Skeletal Hypophosphatemia Syndrome.

Epidermal nevus syndromes encompass a highly heterogeneous group of systemic disorders, characterized by epidermal nevi, and a spectrum of neuromuscular, ocular, and bone abnormalities. Cutaneous-skeletal hypophosphatemia syndrome (CSHS) constitutes a specific sub-entity in which elevated levels of fibroblast growth factor-23 cause hypophosphatemic rickets that are, to date, not amenable to causal therapy. Here, we report the first long-term follow-up of causal treatment with burosumab in a 3-year-old female patient with CSHS.

Emicizumab for All Pediatric Patients with Severe Hemophilia A.

Emicizumab is the first approved nonreplacement therapy for bleeding prophylaxis in hemophilia A (HA) patients. In 2018, it was licensed for HA patients with inhibitors, subsequently followed by an "European Medicines Agency (EMA)" approval for patients with severe HA in the absence of inhibitors in 2019. This is immediately raising the question whether emicizumab is suitable as a first-line treatment for all pediatric patients with severe HA.

Correlation of PET-MRI, Pathology, LOH, and Surgical Success in a Case of CHI With Atypical Large Pancreatic Focus.

Congenital hyperinsulinism (CHI) is a rare cause of severe hypoglycemia in newborns. In focal CHI, usually one activity peak in fluorine-18-L-dihydroxyphenylalanine (F-DOPA) positron emission tomography-magnetic resonance imaging (PET-MRI) indicates one focal lesion and its resection results in cure of the child. We present the case of a 5-month-old girl with CHI.

Cutis marmorata telangiectatica congenita being caused by postzygotic GNA11 mutations.

Cutis marmorata telangiectatica congenita (CMTC) is characterized by coarse-meshed capillary malformations arranged in asymmetrically distributed patches. The disorder may be associated with hyper- or hypoplastic limbs, syndactyly, cleft palate, and glaucoma. Because the disease usually occurs sporadically, the concept of a lethal mutation surviving by mosaicism was proposed about 30 years ago.

Structural Differences Across Multiple Visual Cortical Regions in the Absence of Cone Function in Congenital Achromatopsia.

Most individuals with congenital achromatopsia (ACHM) carry mutations that affect the retinal phototransduction pathway of cone photoreceptors, fundamental to both high acuity vision and colour perception. As the central fovea is occupied solely by cones, achromats have an absence of retinal input to the visual cortex and a small central area of blindness. Additionally, those with complete ACHM have no colour perception, and colour processing regions of the ventral cortex also lack typical chromatic signals from the cones.

Unusual phenotypes in patients with a pathogenic germline variant in DICER1.

Pathogenic germline DICER1 variants are associated with pleuropulmonary blastoma, multinodular goiter, embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma and other tumour types, while mosaic missense DICER1 variants in the RNase IIIb domain are linked to cause GLOW (global developmental delay, lung cysts, overgrowth, and Wilms' tumor) syndrome. Here, we report four families with germline DICER1 pathogenic variants in which one member in each family had a more complex phenotype, including skeletal findings, facial dysmorphism and developmental abnormalities. The developmental features occur with a variable expressivity and incomplete penetrance as also described for the neoplastic and dysplastic lesions associated with DICER1 variants.

Functional assessment of two variants of unknown significance in TEK by endothelium-specific expression in zebrafish embryos.

Vascular malformations are most often caused by somatic mutations of the PI3K/mTOR and the RAS signaling pathways, which can be identified in the affected tissue. Venous malformations (VMs) commonly harbor PIK3CA and TEK mutations, whereas arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) are usually caused by BRAF, RAS or MAP2K1 mutations. Correct identification of the underlying mutation is of increasing importance, since targeted treatments are becoming more and more relevant, especially in patients with extensive vascular malformations.

Mosaic RASopathy due to KRAS variant G12D with segmental overgrowth and associated peripheral vascular malformations.

Oncogenic RAS variants lead to constitutive overactivation and increased signal transduction into downstream pathways. They are found as somatic driver events in various types of human cancer. In a somatic mosaic status, the same RAS variants have been associated with a wide spectrum of focal or segmental tissue dysplasia and overgrowth including various types of congenital nevi, vascular malformations, and other changes (mosaic RASopathies).

Neurofibromatosis Type 1 With Cherubism-like Phenotype, Multiple Osteolytic Bone Lesions of Lower Extremities, and Alagille-syndrome: Case Report With Literature Survey.

Background/aim: Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF) is an autosomal dominant hereditary disease. The cardinal clinical findings include characteristic skeletal alterations. Difficulties in diagnosis and therapy can arise if an individual has further illnesses.

Consensus Recommendations for Intramuscular COVID-19 Vaccination in Patients with Hemophilia.

Background:  Currently available coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines are approved for intramuscular injection and efficacy may not be ensured when given subcutaneously. For years, subcutaneous vaccination was recommended in patients with hemophilia to avoid intramuscular bleeds. Therefore, recommendations for the application of COVID-19 vaccines are needed.

Mutation in an Implant-associated Peripheral Giant Cell Granuloma of the Jaw: Implications of Genetic Analysis of the Lesion for Treatment Concept and Surveillance.

The aim of this case report was to detail diagnosis and therapy in a case of implant-associated peripheral giant cell granuloma (IA-PGCG) of the jaw. Case Report: The 41-year-old female attended the outpatient clinic for treatment of recurrent mandibular IA-PGCG. The lesion was excised and the defect was closed with a connective tissue graft of the palate.

Possible New Strategies for the Treatment of Congenital Hyperinsulinism.

Objective: Congenital hyperinsulinism (CHI) is a rare disease characterized by persistent hypoglycemia as a result of inappropriate insulin secretion, which can lead to irreversible neurological defects in infants. Poor efficacy and strong adverse effects of the current medications impede successful treatment. The aim of the study was to investigate new approaches to silence β-cells and thus attenuate insulin secretion.

Mosaic Neurofibromatosis Type 1 With Multiple Cutaneous Diffuse and Plexiform Neurofibromas of the Lower Leg.

Background: Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) is an autosomal dominant hereditary disease with complete penetrance and a very variable phenotype. Recent research has shown that postzygotic NF1 gene mutations occur to a far greater extent than previously thought. The phenotype of affected individuals reflects the time of somatic mutation and the phenotype is correspondingly diverse.