International Study on Sagliker Syndrome and Uglifying Human Face Appearance in Severe and Late Secondary Hyperparathyroidism in Chronic Kidney Disease Patients

Abstract

Objective: It is known that skeletal changes due to secondary hyperparathyroidism (SH) can be severe in chronic kidney disease (CKD). Recently decribed Sagliker syndrome (SS) is a very striking and prominent feature of SH in CKD, including an uglifying appearance to the face, short stature, extremely severe maxillary and mandibulary changes, soft tissue in the mouth, teeth/dental abnormalities, fingertip changes, knee and scapula deformities, hearing abnormalities, and neurological and, more important, severe psychological problems. Design, Setting, Patients: In the past 8 years, we have encountered 40 cases of SS in SH and CKD by performing an international study in Turkey, India, Romania, Egypt, Maleysia, Tunis, and China. Results: The medical history of these patients showed that they did not receive proper therapy. Changes, particularly in children and teenagers, become irreversible, which was disastrous for the patients both aesthetically and psychologically. Conclusion: Treatment must begin early and be the appropriate treatment given in centers with sophisticated skills. Otherwise, the inability to correct all the changes in the skull and face, to remodel a new face, to extending the height, and, most important, to convince the patients to face the dramatic psychological problems can be catastrophic for those patients. (c) 2008 by the National Kidney Foundation, Inc.