Abstract:

Objective To investigate the clinical and genetic characteristics of PRKAG2 cardiac syndrome (PCS) in Chinese pediatric patients. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data and genetic testing results of patients diagnosed with PCS at Shanghai Children's Medical Center from September 1999 to October 2022. Results Seven pediatric patients were included in this study, six males and one female, with a median age of onset of 9.0 (3.0-12.0) years. Five patients had varying degrees of left ventricular hypertrophy, four had ventricular preexcitation, two had atrioventricular conduction block, and one experienced sinus arrest.Six variants in the PRKAG2 gene were identified among the seven patients, including two novel mutations (F293V, Q337H). During a median follow-up of 3.0 (2.0-3.8)years, one patient progressed to end-stage heart failure and underwent heart transplantation, one received a pacemaker due to complete atrioventricular block, and two underwent septal reduction therapy for left ventricular outflow obstruction (septal myectomy or septal radiofrequency ablation, respectively). Conclusions PCS is a rare cause of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in children, often associated with conduction system abnormalities. It is crucial to consider screening for PCS in pediatric patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy who present with pre-excitation syndrome or bradyarrhythmias.

Key words: PRKAG2 cardiac syndrome, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, pre-excitation syndrome, arrhythmias