Panhypopituitarism, a Cause of Early Sudden Infant Death Syndrome?

Abstract

Panhypopituitarism can manifest itself with variable signs and symptoms, and in some cases it may be responsible for serious events such as cardio-respiratory insufficiency and hypoglycemia which can be fatal. It can be assumed that a condition of panhypopituitarism can cause early sudden death that occurs in the first hours of life. For this reason it is important that the post mortem examination in SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) patients includes the study of the pituitary gland. We present a newborn with panhypopituitarism, in which the onset was dramatic, with severe cardio-respiratory insufficiency and severe hypoglycemia and only the accidentally detection by midwives was life saving. Array CGH analysis showed a microdeletion of chromosome 5q34, including part of the intronic region of the gene ODZ2 inherited from the mother, not related to the patient’s symptoms so far.