Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease which may involve gastrointestinal system (GIS). The aim of this study was to present GIS manifestations of pediatric SLE patients. The medical files of 69 children with SLE followed between January 2011 and January 2016 were reviewed. All fulfilled the Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics criteria. All patients (≤18 years of age) with GIS manifestations were included. GIS manifestations were observed in 19 (27.5%) out of 69 SLE patients and present at the time of SLE diagnosis in 13 (68.4%). The GIS manifestations due to SLE were autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) (n = 8) and lupus enteritis (n = 1). Manifestations associated with SLE were hepatomegaly and hypertransaminasemia due to macrophage activation syndrome (MAS) (n = 3) and hepatic steatosis (n = 1). GIS manifestations as a result of the adverse events of drugs were as follows: toxic hepatitis (n = 3; associated with methotrexate and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in one, methotrexate in another, and azathioprine in another patient), azathioprine-induced cholestatic hepatitis (n = 1), and gastritis associated with corticosteroid (n = 1). In one patient, acute appendicitis occurred as a coincidence. In this study, one of every five pediatric SLE patients had GIS-related manifestations. GIS involvement may occur as an initial manifestation of the disease.

Neonatal presentation is a rare form of NPC with exclusively visceral involvement in the newborn period and poor prognosis leading to premature death due to pulmonary complications and liver failure. What is known: • Neonatal presentation is a rare form of NPC with exclusively visceral involvement in the newborn period and poor prognosis leading to premature death. • Progressive liver disease is the most common cause of death among neonatal-onset NPC patients. What is new: • Natural course of neonatal-onset NPC may show variations. • Pulmonary involvement should be considered as an important cause of death in neonatal-onset cases, and appropriate precautions should be taken to prevent complications of respiratory insufficiency and airway infections.

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Objective : CAV1 encodes caveolin-1, a major protein of plasma membrane microdomains called caveolae, involved in several signalling pathways. Caveolin-1 is also located at the adipocyte lipid droplet. Heterozygous pathogenic variants of CAV1 induce rare heterogeneous disorders including pulmonary arterial hypertension and neonatal progeroid syndrome. Only one patient was previously reported with a CAV1 homozygous pathogenic variant, associated with congenital generalized lipodystrophy (CGL3). We aimed to further delineate genetic transmission, clinical, metabolic and cellular characteristics of CGL3. Design/Methods: In a large consanguineous kindred referred for CGL, we performed next-generation sequencing, as well as clinical, imagery and metabolic investigations. We studied skin fibroblasts from the index case and the previously reported patient with CGL3. Results: Four patients, aged 8 months to 18 years, carried a new homozygous p.(His79Glnfs*3) CAV1 variant. They all displayed generalized lipodystrophy since infancy, insulin resistance, low HDL-cholesterol and/or high triglycerides, but no pulmonary hypertension. Two patients also presented at the age of 15 and 18 years with dysphagia due to achalasia, and one patient had retinitis pigmentosa. Heterozygous parents and relatives (n=9) were asymptomatic, without any metabolic abnormality. Patients’ fibroblasts showed a complete loss of caveolae and no protein expression of caveolin-1 and its caveolin-2 and cavin-1 partners. Patients’ fibroblasts also displayed insulin resistance, increased oxidative stress and premature senescence. Conclusions: The CAV1 null variant investigated herein leads to an autosomal recessive congenital lipodystrophy syndrome. Loss of caveolin-1 and/or caveolae induces specific manifestations including achalasia which requires specific management. Overlapping phenotypic traits between the different CAV1-related diseases require further studies.

Omental and mesenteric cysts are both rare pathologies in children. Children who have omental cysts usually display symptoms of abdominal distension, with or without a palpable mass. The mass can simulate ascites on clinical observation, or tuberculosis on radiological images. The optimal treatment for this condition is complete resection. The presenting symptoms of abdominal distension and the simulation of septated ascites and abdominal tuberculosis are unusual. Reported cases in the literature usually display symptoms of abdominal distension, abdominal pain, painless mass or possible ascites. We describe the clinical presentation of a five-and-a-half-year-old boy who was treated for a diagnosis of abdominal tuberculosis and ascites at another hospital. After three years, he underwent abdominal surgery, and an omental cyst was found intraoperatively. The diagnosis was confirmed by pathological examination.

Background:This study evaluated cardiac function using tissue Doppler echocardiography and assessed electrocardiographic findings in children diagnosed with Wilson’s disease.Method:Asymptomatic patients with a diagnosis of Wilson’s disease (n = 43) were compared to healthy controls (n = 37) that were age and gender matched.Results:The standard electrocardiographic and conventional echocardiographic examinations were similar in both groups. The left ventricular ejection fraction, shortening fraction, and diastolic function were not significantly different between the two groups. The Tei index for mitral lateral, mitral septal, tricuspid lateral, tricuspid septal, and inter-ventricular septum on tissue Doppler echocardiography was higher in the patient group, yet it did not reach statistical significance. Mitral lateral and septal systolic annular velocity values were significantly lower in the patient group when compared to the control group (p = 0.02 and 0.04, respectively). Also, mitral lateral and septal isovolumetric contraction time values were higher in the patient group (p = 0.04). Although the left ventricular values were not significantly different, relative left ventricular wall thickness was higher in the patient group when compared to the control group, and concentric remodelling in the left ventricle was found in 7 (16%) of 42 patients. QT interval (p = 0.02) and P-wave dispersion values (p = 0.04) were significantly higher in the patient group compared to the control group, and these tend to predict arrhythmias.Conclusion:Our study based on the tissue Doppler echocardiography assessment indicated a subclinical systolic, rather than diastolic, dysfunction in the myocardium with increased QT interval and P-wave dispersion, despite the young age of the patients and short disease duration.

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