Successful Pregnancy and Lactation Outcome in a Patient With Gaucher Disease Receiving Enzyme Replacement Therapy, and the Subsequent Distribution and Excretion of Imiglucerase in Human Breast Milk

Background: Enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) with imiglucerase is a well-established, effective treatment for Gaucher disease. However, there have been no published reports regarding the excretion of imiglucerase into human breast milk and its effects on the nursing infant. Objective: This letter reports on the successful pregnancy and lactation of a patient with Gaucher disease receiving treatment with imiglucerase, and the subsequent distribution and excretion of imiglucerase in human breast milk. Methods: A 39-year-old Japanese female (height, 164 cm; weight, 55 kg) with Gaucher disease had 2 successful pregnancies and continued ERT through both. The study was conducted 6 months after the first delivery. She was administered a 1-hour infusion of imiglucerase 60 U/kg that coincided with her regular every-2-week regimen. Serum and breast-milk samples were obtained before and up to 24 hours after administration. Breast-milk samples were also obtained from 10 nursing mothers with galactorrhea as controls. Results: The preinfusion level of breast-milk beta-glucocerebrosidase was 0.008 nmol/h/mL. The peak of serum beta-glucocerebrosidase activity (0.119 nmol/h/mL) was obtained at the end of the 1-hour infusion period. Slightly increased enzymatic activity (0.016 nmol/h/mL) was observed in the first breast milk sampled after imiglucerase infusion. Conclusions: We report a case of successful pregnancy and breastfeeding in a Japanese patient with Gaucher disease. A small amount of imiglucerase was found to be excreted into human breast milk, but only in the first milk produced after infusion. (Clin Ther. 2010;32:2048-2052)ArticleCLINICAL THERAPEUTICS. 32(12):2048-2052 (2010)journal articl

Examining the Validity of Efforts of the Muscular Dystrophy Medical Network in Nagano : A Questionnaire Study

Article信州医学雑誌 66(3): 205-212(2018)journal articl

A novel CACNA1A nonsense variant in a patient presenting with paroxysmal exertion-induced dyskinesia

ArticleJOURNAL OF THE NEUROLOGICAL SCIENCES. 399:214-216 (2019)journal articl

Marked motor function improvement in a 32-year-old woman with childhood-onset hypophosphatasia by asfotase alfa therapy: Evaluation based on standardized testing batteries used in Duchenne muscular dystrophy clinical trials

Hypophosphatasia (HPP) is a rare disorder resulting from biallelic loss-of-function variants or monoallelic dominant negative variants in the ALPL gene. We herein describe the clinical outcome of a 32-year-old woman with childhood-onset HPP caused by compound heterozygous variants in ALPL. Her chief complaints were severe musculoskeletal pain, muscle weakness, and impaired daily activities necessitating assistance in housework and child-rearing in addition to a history of early tooth loss and mildly short stature. Asfotase alfa therapy produced a remarkable increase in muscle strength and daily activities and markedly reduced musculoskeletal pain. Drug efficacy was clearly demonstrated through multiple test batteries (muscle strength test using microFET®2, six-minute walking test, Stair Climb Test, rising-from-floor-time test, and number-of-steps test using Actigraph®) currently adopted as standardized evaluations in Duchenne muscular dystrophy clinical trials since no test batteries for HPP have been established to date. These tests may also be promising for the assessment of HPP

Follow-up nationwide survey on predictive genetic testing for late-onset hereditary neurological diseases in Japan

A follow-up nationwide survey on predictive genetic testing for late-onset neurological diseases in Japan was conducted. A questionnaire was sent to 89 institutional members of the Japan's National Liaison Council for Clinical Sections of Medical Genetics, and was returned by 60 (67.4%). A total of 301 clients with an interest in predictive testing were accumulated from April 2006 to March 2011. The greatest interest was shown for spinocerebellar degeneration (SCD, n = 110), followed by myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1, n = 69), Huntington's disease (HD, n = 52) and familial amyloid polyneuropathy (FAP, n = 35). The ratios of clients who actually underwent predictive testing were: SCD, 21.8%; DM1, 39.1%; HD, 26.9%; and FAP, 74.3%, indicating that predictive testing was conducted very cautiously for untreatable neurological diseases in Japan. Clinical geneticists were predominantly involved in genetic counseling, whereas the participation of non-medical doctor (non-MD) staff, including nurses, clinical psychologists and genetic counselors, was not common. Lack of non-MD counseling staff was one of the most serious issues in conducting predictive testing, which has not been improved since the previous survey performed in 2006. Institutional arrangements, such as revision of medical insurance system regarding genetic testing and counseling, might be necessary to resolve this issue.ArticleJOURNAL OF HUMAN GENETICS. 58(8):560-563 (2013)journal articl

Challenges of Transarticular Screw Fixation in Young Children: Report of Surgical Treatment of a 5-Year-Old Patient's Unstable Os-Odontoideum

Surgical procedures for atlantoaxial (C1–C2) fusion in young children are relatively uncommon. The purpose of this study was to report on a surgical treatment for a case of atlantoaxial instability caused by os-odontoideum in association with quadriparesis and respiratory paralysis in a 5-year-old girl. We present the patient's history, physical examination, and radiographic findings, describe the surgical treatment and a five year follow-up, and provide a literature review. The instability was treated by halo immobilization, followed by C1–C2 transarticular screw fixation using a computed tomography-based navigation system. At the five year follow-up, the patient had made a complete recovery with solid union. The authors conclude that C1–2 transarticular screw fixation is technically possible as in a case of atlantoaxial instability in a five-year-old child

Delineation of musculocontractural Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome caused by dermatan sulfate epimerase deficiency

Background Musculocontractural Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (mcEDS) is a rare connective tissue disorder caused by biallelic loss-of-function variants in CHST14 (mcEDS-CHST14) or DSE (mcEDS-DSE), both of which result in defective dermatan sulfate biosynthesis. Forty-one patients with mcEDS-CHST14 and three patients with mcEDS-DSE have been described in the literature. Methods Clinical, molecular, and glycobiological findings in three additional patients with mcEDS-DSE were investigated. Results Three patients from two families shared craniofacial characteristics (hypertelorism, blue sclera, midfacial hypoplasia), skeletal features (pectus and spinal deformities, characteristic finger shapes, progressive talipes deformities), skin features (fine or acrogeria-like palmar creases), and ocular refractive errors. Homozygous pathogenic variants in DSE were found: c.960T>A/p.Tyr320* in patient 1 and c.996dupT/p.Val333Cysfs*4 in patients 2 and 3. No dermatan sulfate was detected in the urine sample from patient 1, suggesting a complete depletion of DS. Conclusion McEDS-DSE is a congenital multisystem disorder with progressive symptoms involving craniofacial, skeletal, cutaneous, and cardiovascular systems, similar to the symptoms of mcEDS-CHST14. However, the burden of symptoms seems lower in patients with mcEDS-DSE

Brothers with genu recurvatum

ArticleKNEE. 14(6): 500-501 (2007)journal articl

Attitudes toward and current status of disclosure of secondary findings from next-generation sequencing: a nation-wide survey of clinical genetics professionals in Japan

The management of secondary findings (SFs), which are beyond the intended purpose of the analysis, from clinical comprehensive genomic analysis using next generation sequencing (NGS) presents challenges. Policy statements regarding their clinical management have been announced in Japan and other countries. In Japan, however, the current status of and attitudes of clinical genetics professionals toward reporting them are unclear. We conducted a questionnaire survey of clinical genetics professionals at two time points (2013 and 2019) to determine the enforcement of the SF management policy in cases of comprehensive genetic analysis of intractable diseases and clinical cancer genome profiling testing. According to the survey findings, 40% and 70% of the respondents stated in the 2013 and 2019 surveys, respectively, that they had an SF policy in the field of intractable diseases, indicating that SF policy awareness in Japan has changed significantly in recent years. Furthermore, a total of 80% of respondents stated that their facility had established a policy for clinical cancer genome profiling testing in the 2019 survey. In both surveys, the policies included the selection criteria for genes to be disclosed and the procedure to return SFs, followed by recommendations and proposals regarding SFs in Japan and other countries. To create a better list of the genes to be disclosed, further examination is needed considering the characteristics of each analysis