[Clinico-electroencephalographic study of familial (genetic) forms of nanism]

Genetic nanism is a widespread phenomenon. Only familial forms constituted 22.8% of the cases of hypophysial and cerebral nanism. A total of 32 patients belonging to 15 families with repeated cases of the disease were examined clinically and electroencephalographically. In genetic hypophysial nanism clinical peculiarities of the disease and the EEG indices were similar within the limits of the same family and showed distinct differences in the patients belonging to different families. The differences are determined chiefly by the level of sex maturation. The EEG in genetic hypophysial nanism was identical to that in the total group of patients with the hypophysial nanism without any organic cerebral pathology. The EEG of the sexually immature patients suffering from nanism was characterized by the immaturity features both in the prepubertal period and in the course of the whole following life, whereas in the patients with a spontaneous sexual development the EEG corresponded to the age criteria at any age. The EEG examination of the patients with hypophysial nanism at the prepubertal period permits to prognosticate their subsequent sexual development.