[Urinary excretion of hydroxyproline in funnel chest deformity]

Excretion of hydroxyproline with urine was studied in 16 children with localized form of funnel chest deformation simultaneously with Marfan and Ehlers-Danlos syndromes, in 9 children with the localized form of deformation within 6-8 months after thorax surgical plastic operation as well as in 3 children with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome but without funnel chest deformation. Funnel chest deformation of the II-III degree, independently of its form, was accompanied by a decrease of total hydroxyproline in urine as compared with healthy children of the similar age. The hydroxyproline excretion was normalized after thoracoplastic operation in the children with localized form of the chest deformation. In Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, independently on presence or absence of the chest deformation, relative content of free hydroxyproline was increased in urine, while the peptide-bound amino acid was decreased (peptides with molecular mass above 700 daltons); this phenomenon appears to be a characteristic property of the syndrome.