Hereditary angioedema in Austria: prevalence and regional peculiarities.

BACKGROUND: Data on the prevalence and clinical features of Austrian patients with hereditary angioedema (HAE) with C1-inhibitor (C1-INH) deficiency (HAE-1) or dysfunction (HAE-2) are lacking. METHODS: Current baseline data were collected in a national survey. The records of HAE patients at the Medical University of Graz were analyzed with regard to clinical characteristics. RESULTS: A total of 137 patients were identified, yielding a prevalence of 1 : 64,396. The median age at the onset of symptoms was 6.5 years, and the median age at the time of correct diagnosis 21.0 years. The median delay in diagnosis was 15.0 years for newly diagnosed patients without a family history of HAE. Patients with a family history of HAE received an immediate diagnosis. HAE patients without a family history of HAE and born before 1960 had to wait a median of 16.0 years until they were diagnosed correctly. Patients born after 1980 still experienced a median diagnostic delay of 6.5 years. CONCLUSION: Patients with this condition still face an excessive diagnostic delay in some parts of Austria, or their disorder may even remain unrecognized by specialists. This underlines the need for better awareness of the disease.

Psychometric Field Study of Hereditary Angioedema Quality of Life Questionnaire for Adults: HAE-QoL.

BACKGROUND: Hereditary angioedema due to C1 inhibitor deficiency (C1-INH-HAE) may affect health-related quality of life (HRQoL). A specific HRQoL questionnaire for adult patients with C1-INH-HAE, the HAE-QoL, has recently been developed in Spain. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to perform a cross-cultural validation and psychometric study of the HAE-QoL in an international setting. METHODS: Cross-cultural adaptation of the Spanish HAE-QoL draft version and an international rating phase with experts were performed. The resultant version of the HAE-QoL, a clinical questionnaire, and Short Form 36-item Health Survey Version 2.0 (SF-36v2) were pilot tested internationally. Item reduction was based on both descriptive and exploratory factor analysis. Psychometric properties were assessed. RESULTS: Cross-cultural adaptation of the HAE-QoL was performed in 18 countries. The draft version of the HAE-QoL was pilot tested in 332 patients, and accurate data were obtained from 290 patients from 11 countries. The reduction process resulted in a new version with 25 items and 7 dimensions (treatment difficulties, physical functioning and health, disease-related stigma, emotional role and social functioning, concern about offspring, perceived control over illness, and mental health). Strong psychometric properties were observed (Cronbach's α 0.92; test-retest reliability 0.87). Convergent validity showed mild to moderate correlations with SF-36v2 physical and mental component summaries (0.45 and 0.64, respectively) and with SF-36v2 dimensions (P < .004). HAE-QoL scores discriminated significantly among severity groups (median: asymptomatic 133.5 vs severe 84.0; P < .001); between patients with and without long-term prophylaxis (median: 101 vs 90; P = .001); and between patients with and without psychiatric and/or psychological care (median: 74 vs 103; P ≤ .001). CONCLUSIONS: The HAE-QoL, currently available in 18 languages, showed good reliability and validity evidence.

Prophylaxis in hereditary angioedema (HAE) with C1 inhibitor deficiency.

Hereditary angioedema (HAE) is a rare congenital disorder characterized by recurrent episodes of subcutaneous or submucosal edema. Laryngeal manifestations can be life-threatening. In the majority of cases, the disease can be adequately treated with an on-demand approach--in some cases, however, short- or long-term prophylaxis is indicated. Attenuated androgens used to be the drugs of choice, but they are associated with considerable side effects and no longer commercially available in the German-speaking countries of the EU. They are currently being replaced by more effective and more tolerable agents such C1-inhibitors, the kallikrein inhibitor ecallantide, and the B2 receptor antagonist icatibant, which have recently obtained market authorization. These new drugs have had a major impact, especially on the indications and procedures for long-term prophylaxis. According to the most recent international consensus papers and our own experience, self-administered C1-inhibitors are now the first option for long-term prophylactic therapy. The decision for prophylaxis should no longer be based on single parameters such as the frequency of attacks but on adequate overall disease control including quality of life. More drugs are currently being developed, which may lead to further changes in the treatment algorithms of HAE.

High mutation detection rates in cerebral cavernous malformation upon stringent inclusion criteria: one-third of probands are minors.

Cerebral cavernous malformations (CCM) are prevalent vascular malformations occurring in familial autosomal dominantly inherited or isolated forms. Once CCM are diagnosed by magnetic resonance imaging, the indication for genetic testing requires either a positive family history of cavernous lesions or clinical symptoms such as chronic headaches, epilepsy, neurological deficits, and hemorrhagic stroke or the occurrence of multiple lesions in an isolated case. Following these inclusion criteria, the mutation detection rates in a consecutive series of 105 probands were 87% for familial and 57% for isolated cases. Thirty-one novel mutations were identified with a slight shift towards proportionally more CCM3 mutations carriers than previously published (CCM1: 60%, CCM2: 18%, CCM3: 22%). In-frame deletions and exonic missense variants requiring functional analyses to establish their pathogenicity were rare: An in-frame deletion within the C-terminal FERM domain of CCM1 resulted in decreased protein expression and impaired binding to the transmembrane protein heart of glass (HEG1). Notably, 20% of index cases carrying a CCM mutation were below age 10 and 33% below age 18 when referred for genetic testing. Since fulminant disease courses during the first years of life were observed in CCM1 and CCM3 mutation carriers, predictive testing of minor siblings became an issue.

Successful treatment of acute hereditary angioedema attacks with self-administered icatibant in patients with venous access problems.

Hereditary angioedema is a rare and potentially fatal autosomal dominant disorder characterised by unpredictable skin, gastrointestinal tract or respiratory tract oedema. Plasma-derived C1-esterase inhibitors are effective in the prophylaxis or treatment of hereditary angioedema type I and II attacks, but must be administered intravenously. This may be problematic in patients with venous access difficulties. Icatibant, a bradykinin B2-receptor antagonist, is administered subcutaneously. In July 2008 icatibant received approval for healthcare professional-administered treatment of hereditary angioedema attacks in adults. In 2011 it received European Medicines Agency and US Food and Drug Administration licences for patient-administered treatment of hereditary angioedema attacks. Given these approvals, and with the appropriate training, icatibant could provide the opportunity for patients to self-administer treatment. This is one of the first long-term follow-up reports of patients with hereditary angioedema using self-administered icatibant. During follow-up, icatibant remained effective and patient satisfaction was high.

Asymptomatic sensitization to hymenoptera venom is related to total immunoglobulin E levels.

BACKGROUND: The detection of specific serum immunoglobulin E (sIgE) to Hymenoptera venoms is an established diagnostic tool to diagnose insect venom hypersensitivity. However, the specificity of sIgE detection is a debated issue. METHODS: In 145 subjects, total IgE (tIgE) and sIgE to Hymenoptera venoms as well as sIgE to rapeseed as a marker of cross-reactive carbohydrate determinants were measured. In addition, an atopy score was determined for each patient. We looked for a possible association between tIgE and the presence of sIgE in subjects with a negative history of large local or systemic reactions to insect stings. RESULTS: Fifteen of 65 subjects (23.1%) with low levels of tIgE (<50 kU/l) had sIgE for bee or wasp venom, and 23 of 47 subjects (48.9%) with a tIgE from 50 to 250 kU/l showed sIgE. The highest rate of asymptomatic sensitization (22 of 33; 66.7%) was found in patients with tIgE levels higher than 250 kU/l. Median sIgE was approximately 4.8 times higher in subjects with tIgE levels above 250 kU/l than in those with tIgE levels <50 kU/l. Interestingly, a significant difference in median tIgE was recorded between individuals with and without sIgE to rapeseed [776.5 kU/l (25, 75% percentiles: 252.5, 2,000.0) vs. 50.5 kU/l (20.1, 172.0), respectively; p < 0001]. CONCLUSION: Specific antibodies are frequently seen in individuals with high tIgE, but appear to be largely irrelevant in clinical terms. This might lead to misdiagnosis in persons with an inconclusive sting history.