Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome with partial trisomy of 1q

Case contributed by Sachin Balutkar
Diagnosis certain

Presentation

Presented for evaluation of fetal congenital anomalies.

Patient Data

Age: 18 weeks gestation
Gender: Female
  • parasagittal view of the fetal face shows evidence of retrognathia/micrognathia

  • parasagittal view of the foetal face shows evidence of a relatively hypoplastic nasal bone

  • axial view of foetal skull base at the level of hard palate shows evidence of unilateral right cleft lip and palate

  • coronal view of foetal face shows evidence of unilateral right cleft lip

  • axial views of foetal abdomen and chest shows normal left sided fundic bubble and cardiac apex / axis directed towards left. However, the cardiac axis measured 14.8° suggestive of relative mesocardia

  • axial view of foetal heart shows abnormal 4 chamber view with hypoplastic left sided cardiac chambers suggestive of hypoplastic left heart syndrome / pulmonary isomerism; right sided cardiac chambers appear normal

  • color doppler flow imaging of the ductus venosus shows evidence of persistent reversal of 'a' wave

  • axial view of foetal pelvis shows evidence of single umbilical artery on the right side. Axial section of the umbilical cord shows evidence of absent 'Mickey Mouse sign' suggestive of two vesseled umbilical cord

  • coronal view of foetal leg shows evidence of congenital talipes equinovarus deformity

  • reconstructed 3D image of foetal face and limbs shows evidence of unilateral right cleft lip, retrognathia/ micrognathia and bilateral congenital talipes equinovarus deformities

  • reconstructed 3D image of the foetal face shows evidence of unilateral right cleft lip

  • reconstructed 3D image of the foetal legs shows evidence of bilateral congenital talipes equinovarus deformities

Pathology specimen

pathology

Image (post MTP pathology specimen of the foetus) shows:

  • evidence of micrognathia/retrognathia and abnormally sloping forehead

  • an additional finding of poorly formed left external ear pinna with skin flap / tags along its anterior aspect (not detected on ultrasound)

  • congenital talipes equinovarus deformity

  • micrognathia/retrognathia, abnormally sloping forehead and unilateral right cleft lip and palate

Pathology and USG Reports

Photo

Image:

  1. chromosomal microarray analysis shows a deletion-duplication syndrome, with a 24,291 Kbp (~24.2 MB) deletion on chromosome 4 and 17,237 Kbp (~ 17.2 MB) duplication on chromosome 1, suggesting a chromosomal rearrangement at these loci referred as translocation. CMA analysis shows about 24,291 Kbp (~24.2 MB) deletion on chromosome 4, spanning p16.3-15.2 region. CMA analysis also  shows about 17,237 Kbp (~ 17.2 MB) duplication on chromosome 1 spanning q42.2-44, corresponding to partial 1p trisomy syndrome

  2. karyo-view of the above-mentioned findings in image no. 1

  3. detailed foetal biometry shows evidence of asymmetric foetal growth parameters with asymmetric IUGR. Foetal abdominal circumference is significantly reduced with deranged foetal bio-metric ratios i.e. FL/AC, FL/BPD, HC /AC ratios

  4. various foetal bio-metric graphs shows Nasal bone measuring <5th percentile suggestive of hypoplastic nasal bone and asymmetrical IUGR

Case Discussion

A second-time gravida reported for evaluation of foetal congenital anomalies. Gestational age calculated by last menstrual period was 22 weeks and 2 days. The foetus was found to have multiple congenital anomalies during the anomaly scan and was subjected to medical termination of pregnancy. Maternal past history of full-term normal delivery with a healthy baby, now 5 years old. No history of systemic hypertension/pregnancy-induced hypertension or diabetes mellitus type 2 or gestational diabetes mellitus.

Final diagnosis:

A case of Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome (WHS) with partial trisomy of 1q secondary to deletion-duplication syndrome. A deletion-duplication syndrome, with a ~24.2 MB deletion on chromosome 4 and ~ 17.2 MB duplication on chromosome 1, suggesting translocation.

a. distal deletions of the short arm of chromosome 4, including 4p16.3 micro-deletion syndrome, causes Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome. The size of the deletion varies among affected individuals; studies suggest that larger deletions tend to result in more severe intellectual disability and physical abnormalities than smaller deletions 1,2.


b. partial duplication on the distal region of the long arm of chromosome 1 is a very rare condition referred to as either pure trisomy or unbalanced translocations, affecting only 200 or so patients worldwide 3.

The fetus in this case had many features of both syndromes.

i. congenital anomalies associated with WHS, that were noted in this foetus are: Prenatal growth retardation (IUGR), facial deformities (Greek warrior helmet appearance: high forehead, prominent glabella, hypertelorism, high-arched eyebrows, protruding eyes and micrognathia), cardiac anomalies- pulmonary isomerism, abnormality of the external ear 1,2.

ii. congenital anomalies associated with partial trisomy of chromosome 1, that were noted in this foetus are protruding forehead and micrognathia.

The prognosis of Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome is poor. Frequently, this diagnosis is associated with fetal demise or infant death within the first year of life. Individuals who live past the first year of life, have a slow, but constant physical and mental development. About 1/3 of the patients die within the first two years of life due to a heart defect, aspiration pneumonia, or from a seizure. Only symptomatic treatment is available 1,2.

Differential diagnoses:

  • Pitt-Rogers-Danks syndrome: has features that overlap with those of Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome. Researchers now recognize that these two conditions are actually part of a single syndrome with variable signs and symptoms

  • in a foetus with multiple congenital anomalies, other trisomy syndromes such as trisomy 18,13 and 21 also merit consideration

Written consent for case publication has been obtained.

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