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Published on: July 1, 2020
Prevalence of congenital muscular dystrophy in Italy: a population study
Alessandra Graziano1, Flaviana Bianco1, Adele D'Amico1
1From the Departments of Paediatrics and Neurology (A.G., F.B., G.T., M. Monforte, E.R., M.P., E.M.), Catholic University, Rome; Unit of Neuromuscular and Neurodegenerative Disorders (A.D., G.T., E.B.), Department of Neurosciences, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital, Rome; Pediatric Neurology and Neuromuscular Disease and Immunology Unit (I.M., M. Mora, L.M.), Istituto Neurologico Besta, Milan; Department of Neurosciences, Psychiatry and Anaesthesiology (S.M.), University of Messina; Neuromuscular Disease Unit (C.B., C.M.), G. Gaslini Institute, Genoa; Department of Neurosciences (E.P.), University of Padua, Italy; Department of Developmental Neuroscience and Molecular Medicine Neuromuscular Unit (G.A., R.B., F.M.S.), Stella Maris Institute, Pisa; Department of Neurological Sciences (F. Magri, G.P.C.), IRCCS Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, University of Milan; Child Neurology and Psychiatry Unit (A.B.), IRCCS C. Mondino Foundation; Neuromuscular and Rare Diseases Unit (M. Moggio), IRCCS Foundation Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Dino Ferrari Center, Milano; Child Neurology and Psychiatry Unit (A.P.), IRCCS Istituto delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Bellaria Hospital, Bologna; Cardiomiologia e Genetica Medica (R.P., L.P.), Dipartimento di Medicina Sperimentale Seconda Università di Napoli; Neuromuscular Center (T.M.), S.G. Battista Hospital, University of Turin; Centro Nemo (K.G.), Milan; Neuromuscular Unit (M.V.), Nigrisoli Hospital, Bologna; Section of Medical Genetics (F.G., A.F.), Department of Experimental and Diagnostic Medicine, Ferrara, Italy; and Dubowitz Neuromuscular Centre (F. Muntoni), UCL Institute of Child Health & Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London, UK.
Objective:
We provide a nationwide population study of patients with congenital muscular dystrophy in Italy.
Methods:
Cases were ascertained from the databases in all the tertiary referral centers for pediatric neuromuscular disorders and from all the genetic diagnostic centers in which diagnostic tests for these forms are performed.
Results:
The study includes 336 patients with a point prevalence of 0.563 per 100,000. Mutations were identified in 220 of the 336 (65.5%). The cohort was subdivided into diagnostic categories based on the most recent classifications on congenital muscular dystrophies. The most common forms were those with α-dystroglycan glycosylation deficiency (40.18%) followed by those with laminin α2 deficiency (24.11%) and collagen VI deficiency (20.24%). The forms of congenital muscular dystrophy related to mutations in SEPN1 and LMNA were less frequent (6.25% and 5.95%, respectively).
Conclusions:
Our study provides for the first time comprehensive epidemiologic information and point prevalence figures for each of the major diagnostic categories on a large cohort of congenital muscular dystrophies. The study also reflects the diagnostic progress in this field with an accurate classification of the cases according to the most recent gene discoveries.
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