Kutsuna S, Ohmagari N, Tanizaki R, Hagino N, Nishikomori R , et al.
Modern rheumatology •
A 26-year-old woman presented with fever and pharyngitis. She previously experienced four periodic febrile episodes at 30- to 40-day intervals. We suspected periodic fever, aphthous stomatitis, pharyngitis, and adenitis (PFAPA) syndrome, and prescribed predisolone, thereby her fever rapidly subsided. Her febrile episodes improved after daily cimetidine treatment. Genetic testing results of genomic DNA for periodic fever syndromes were negative, although she was heterozygous for p.Glu148Gln variation in MEFV, supporting the diagnosis of PFAPA syndrome.
Taniuchi S, Nishikomori R, Iharada A, Tuji S, Heike T , et al.
The open rheumatology journal •
The pathogenesis of PFAPA (periodic fever, aphthous stomatitis, pharyngitis, adenitis) syndrome is unknown as yet. In order to understand whether genes implicated in other auto-inflammatory diseases might be involved in the pathogenesis of PFAPA, all variants in the genes causing familial Mediterranean fever (FMF), tumor necrosis factor (TNF) receptor-associated periodic syndrome (TRAPS), and Hyper IgD syndrome were analyzed in children with PFAPA. All variants in MEFV, TNFRSF1A, and MVK were analyzed in 20 patients with PFAPA. PFAPA were diagnosed by previous published criteria. The findings of all analyses in PFAPA patients were compared with those of unaffected normal subjects (n=62). In the 13 children of 20 with PFAPA, the heterozygous variants of MEFV (5 patients: E148Q-L110P, 2 patients: E148Q, 1 patient: E148Q-L110P/E148Q, 1 patient: E148Q-P369S-R408Q-E84K, 1 patient: E148Q-L110P-P369S-A408G, 1 patient: R202Q, 1 patient: P115R) were found. No variants belonging to TNFRSF1A or MVK were detected in children with PFAPA. The frequency of the E148Q-L110P variants in children with PFAPA was significantly higher than that observed in unaffected normal subjects (7/20 versus 8/62). The duration of the episodes of illness in PFAPA children with MEFV variants was shorter than that of patients without variants. Genes involved in the development and progression of MEFV may affect the incidence and the phenotype of PFAPA in children.
