Atypical Presentations and Specific Genotypes Are Associated With a Delay in Diagnosis in Females With Rett Syndrome

There is often delay between onset of Rett syndrome symptoms and its diagnosis, possibly related to symptom presentation or socio-demographic factors. We hypothesized that girls with an atypical presentation or whose family had a lower socio-economic status would receive a later diagnosis. Female su...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Fehr, S., Downs, Jennepher, Bebbington, A., Leonard, H.
Format: Journal Article
Published: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/47671
_version_ 1848757898336796672
author Fehr, S.
Downs, Jennepher
Bebbington, A.
Leonard, H.
author_facet Fehr, S.
Downs, Jennepher
Bebbington, A.
Leonard, H.
author_sort Fehr, S.
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description There is often delay between onset of Rett syndrome symptoms and its diagnosis, possibly related to symptom presentation or socio-demographic factors. We hypothesized that girls with an atypical presentation or whose family had a lower socio-economic status would receive a later diagnosis. Female subjects with a confirmed diagnosis of Rett syndrome were sourced from the Australian Rett Syndrome and InterRett Databases. Variables analyzed included timing and development of symptoms; MECP2 mutation type; parental occupation and education; maternal age and birth order. Residential location and socio-economic status were also analyzed for the Australian cases. Linear regression was used to determine relationships between these factors and age at diagnosis.A total of 909 cases were included. An older age of diagnosis was associated with later loss of hand function and speech, later onset of hand stereotypies and the presence of the p.R133C or p.R294X MECP2 mutation. Socio-economic factors did not predict age of diagnosis for Australian families. For families participating in the InterRett database, a younger age of diagnosis was associated with higher levels of parental education or occupation. A clinical picture consistent with the classic presentation of Rett syndrome is associated with an earlier diagnosis. Clinicians need to be alerted to the variable presentation of Rett syndrome including the milder phenotypes of cases with the p.R133C or p.R294X mutation. Educational resources to assist this understanding including guidance on when to request genetic testing could be useful to streamline the process of diagnosis in Rett syndrome.
first_indexed 2025-11-14T09:35:24Z
format Journal Article
id curtin-20.500.11937-47671
institution Curtin University Malaysia
institution_category Local University
last_indexed 2025-11-14T09:35:24Z
publishDate 2010
publisher John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
recordtype eprints
repository_type Digital Repository
spelling curtin-20.500.11937-476712018-03-29T09:07:21Z Atypical Presentations and Specific Genotypes Are Associated With a Delay in Diagnosis in Females With Rett Syndrome Fehr, S. Downs, Jennepher Bebbington, A. Leonard, H. symptom presentation socio-economic status Rett syndrome age at diagnosis MECP2 There is often delay between onset of Rett syndrome symptoms and its diagnosis, possibly related to symptom presentation or socio-demographic factors. We hypothesized that girls with an atypical presentation or whose family had a lower socio-economic status would receive a later diagnosis. Female subjects with a confirmed diagnosis of Rett syndrome were sourced from the Australian Rett Syndrome and InterRett Databases. Variables analyzed included timing and development of symptoms; MECP2 mutation type; parental occupation and education; maternal age and birth order. Residential location and socio-economic status were also analyzed for the Australian cases. Linear regression was used to determine relationships between these factors and age at diagnosis.A total of 909 cases were included. An older age of diagnosis was associated with later loss of hand function and speech, later onset of hand stereotypies and the presence of the p.R133C or p.R294X MECP2 mutation. Socio-economic factors did not predict age of diagnosis for Australian families. For families participating in the InterRett database, a younger age of diagnosis was associated with higher levels of parental education or occupation. A clinical picture consistent with the classic presentation of Rett syndrome is associated with an earlier diagnosis. Clinicians need to be alerted to the variable presentation of Rett syndrome including the milder phenotypes of cases with the p.R133C or p.R294X mutation. Educational resources to assist this understanding including guidance on when to request genetic testing could be useful to streamline the process of diagnosis in Rett syndrome. 2010 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/47671 10.1002/ajmg.a.33640 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. restricted
spellingShingle symptom presentation
socio-economic status
Rett syndrome
age at diagnosis
MECP2
Fehr, S.
Downs, Jennepher
Bebbington, A.
Leonard, H.
Atypical Presentations and Specific Genotypes Are Associated With a Delay in Diagnosis in Females With Rett Syndrome
title Atypical Presentations and Specific Genotypes Are Associated With a Delay in Diagnosis in Females With Rett Syndrome
title_full Atypical Presentations and Specific Genotypes Are Associated With a Delay in Diagnosis in Females With Rett Syndrome
title_fullStr Atypical Presentations and Specific Genotypes Are Associated With a Delay in Diagnosis in Females With Rett Syndrome
title_full_unstemmed Atypical Presentations and Specific Genotypes Are Associated With a Delay in Diagnosis in Females With Rett Syndrome
title_short Atypical Presentations and Specific Genotypes Are Associated With a Delay in Diagnosis in Females With Rett Syndrome
title_sort atypical presentations and specific genotypes are associated with a delay in diagnosis in females with rett syndrome
topic symptom presentation
socio-economic status
Rett syndrome
age at diagnosis
MECP2
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/47671