Homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia

We report a rare case of homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (HoFH), a 22-year-old Malay woman who presented initially with minor soft tissue injury due to a cycling accident. She was then incidentally found to have severe xanthelasma and hypercholesterolemia (serum TC 15.3 mmol/L and LDL-C 13.9 mmol/L). She was referred to the Specialized Lipid Clinic and was diagnosed with familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) based on the Simon Broome (SB) diagnostic criteria. There was a family history of premature coronary heart disease (CHD) in that three siblings had sudden cardiac death, and of consanguineous marriage in that her parents are cousins. DNA screening of LDLR and APOB genes was done by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), followed by Denaturing High Performance Liquid Chromatography (DHPLC). Homozygous mutation C255S in Exon 5 of her LDLR gene was found. There was no mutation was found in Exon 26 and Exon 29 of the APOB gene. This report is to emphasize the importance of identifying patients with FH and cascade screening through established diagnostic criteria and genetic studies in order to ensure early detection and early treatment intervention to minimize the risk of developing CHD and related complications.