Diagnosis and treatment of Wilson's disease

ML Schilsky - Pediatric transplantation, 2002 - Wiley Online Library
ML Schilsky
Pediatric transplantation, 2002Wiley Online Library
Wilson's disease (WD) has moved on from being a recognized syndrome that was uniformly
fatal to a curative disease for which the genetic basis has been discovered. Most pediatric
patients present with hepatic manifestations, but some may have neurologic or psychiatric
features. Clinical and biochemical screening, including liver biopsy for hepatic copper
analysis, remain the standard for diagnosis, but haplotype analysis for siblings is now
available and should be considered for family screening when possible. Lifelong medical …
Abstract: Wilson's disease (WD) has moved on from being a recognized syndrome that was uniformly fatal to a curative disease for which the genetic basis has been discovered. Most pediatric patients present with hepatic manifestations, but some may have neurologic or psychiatric features. Clinical and biochemical screening, including liver biopsy for hepatic copper analysis, remain the standard for diagnosis, but haplotype analysis for siblings is now available and should be considered for family screening when possible. Lifelong medical therapy remains the mainstay of treatment, but treatment preferences are changing from penicillamine to alternative agents such as trientine and zinc. OLT remains lifesaving for those with fulminant WD and those in whom initial medical therapy fails. The future will probably see the application of rapid and accurate molecular diagnostic testing for this disorder and new therapeutic modalities such as hepatocyte transplantation, gene replacement therapy, and gene modification.
Wiley Online Library