Hereditary angioedema with an estrogen trigger in a 12-year-old

Hereditary angioedema (HAE) is rare autosomal dominant genetic disorder, commonly affecting girls around the menarche, which manifests clinically as recurrent episodes of angioedema. Laryngeal edema can lead to asphyxiation and death. Traditionally hormones have been avoided in the management due a reported association with flares in the literature. This case describes an alternative management with a progestin.

A 12 year old HAE sufferer failed to receive relief from her symptoms of angioedema with standard treatment. A trial of depot medroxyprogesterone acetate has resulted in resolution of her symptoms for the last 14 months.

Although estrogens and progestins have been avoided in the management of HAE in the past, the reasons for this are based only on a small number of case reports. In this case, successful treatment with depot medroxyprogesterone acetate indicates that progestins, as an alternative management for estrogen-triggered HAE, certainly warrants further research.