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Protein C and S deficiency causing childhood stroke
D C Brown1, J H Livingston, R A Minns
1Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Edinburgh.
Insights
Childhood stroke can be linked to deficiencies in proteins C and S, crucial for preventing blood clots. This study identifies these deficiencies in two pediatric cerebrovascular accident patients.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Neurology
- Hematology
- Thrombosis Research
Background:
- Cerebrovascular disease (CVD) affects 2.5/100,000 children annually.
- Cerebral infarction is increasingly diagnosed in neonates.
- Protein C and S deficiencies are newly recognized causes of thrombosis.
Observation:
- This study investigated the association between protein C or S deficiency and childhood cerebrovascular accident (CVA).
- Immunologic and functional assays were utilized to assess protein levels.
- Two pediatric patients presenting with stroke were evaluated.
Findings:
- One patient was diagnosed with protein C deficiency.
- The other patient was diagnosed with protein S deficiency.
- These findings highlight a potential link between these specific protein deficiencies and stroke in children.
Implications:
- Early diagnosis of protein C and S deficiencies can aid in managing pediatric stroke.
- Understanding these deficiencies may lead to targeted thrombotic risk reduction strategies.
- Further research is warranted to explore the prevalence and management of these deficiencies in pediatric CVD.
Abstract:
The annual incidence of cerebrovascular disease in children is 2.5/100,000 and cerebral infarction is being increasingly recognised in neonates. Deficiency of proteins C and S and their roles in thrombosis have only recently been recognised. Immunologic and functional assays of these proteins now make it possible to determine whether deficiency of them is associated in any particular case of childhood cerebrovascular accident (CVA). We describe two patients, both presenting with stroke in childhood, who were found to be deficient, one in protein C and one in protein S.