Context: X-linked hypophosphatemic rickets (XLH) is characterized by hypophosphatemia and growth retardation. Early diagnosis and treatment improve growth.
Objective: Our objective was to describe long-term observations of a family with XLH due to a novel mutation of the PHEX gene with unusual clinical features, including normal growth.
Patients: The mother and her two sons were followed in the same institution for nearly 30 yr.
Results: The mother had hypophosphatemia and normal height (Z score, -0.6) without ever receiving any treatment. Her two sons achieved final heights of 183.7 cm (Z score, -0.01) and 182.7 cm (Z score, -0.18), respectively, despite late initiation of treatment with phosphate and low serum phosphate levels. In addition, they had reversible proximal myopathy that took about 7 yr to resolve in one of them. Direct sequencing of the PHEX gene revealed a new splice site mutation in intron 4 of the gene (IVS4+6T-->C) resulting in skipping of exon 4.
Conclusions: Three members of a family with XLH due to a novel mutation of the PHEX gene had a normal growth pattern despite late diagnosis and treatment of the two boys and no treatment at all of their mother. The pathophysiological basis of this phenotype-genotype association warrants further investigation.