Scanning and transmission electron microscopic aspects of the nasal acilia syndrome

A 3-month-old boy was admitted with failure to thrive and persistent fevers. During a 4 month hospitalization for treatment of suspected sepsis, persistent purulent nasal discharge developed. Biopsies of his nasal mucosa on 3 separate occasions disclosed thinned respiratory epithelium and a complete absence of cilia when examined by electron microscopy (EM). Despite an initial granulocytopenia and a wide range in T-cell numbers, he did not show any evidence of lower respiratory tract infection. A tracheal biopsy process for EM demonstrated normal ciliated epithelium. This patient appears to have an unrecognized syndrome of normal tracheal cilia but absent nasal cilia.