MedGen

Osteopetrosis is a bone disease that makes bone tissue abnormally compact and dense and also prone to breakage (fracture). Researchers have described several major types of osteopetrosis, which are usually distinguished by their pattern of inheritance: autosomal dominant or autosomal recessive. The different types of the disorder can also be distinguished by the severity of their signs and symptoms.

Autosomal dominant osteopetrosis (ADO), which is also called Albers-Schönberg disease, is typically the mildest type of the disorder. Some affected individuals have no symptoms. In affected people with no symptoms, the unusually dense bones may be discovered by accident when an x-ray is done for another reason. 

In individuals with ADO who develop signs and symptoms, the major features of the condition include multiple bone fractures after minor injury, abnormal side-to-side curvature of the spine (scoliosis) or other spinal abnormalities, arthritis in the hips, and a bone infection called osteomyelitis. These problems usually become apparent in late childhood or adolescence.

Autosomal recessive osteopetrosis (ARO) is a more severe form of the disorder that becomes apparent in early infancy. Affected individuals have a high risk of bone fracture resulting from seemingly minor bumps and falls. Their abnormally dense skull bones pinch nerves in the head and face (cranial nerves), often resulting in vision loss, hearing loss, and paralysis of facial muscles. Dense bones can also impair the function of bone marrow, preventing it from producing new blood cells and immune system cells. As a result, people with severe osteopetrosis are at risk of abnormal bleeding, a shortage of red blood cells (anemia), and recurrent infections. In the most severe cases, these bone marrow abnormalities can be life-threatening in infancy or early childhood.

Other features of autosomal recessive osteopetrosis can include slow growth and short stature, dental abnormalities, and an enlarged liver and spleen (hepatosplenomegaly). Depending on the genetic changes involved, people with severe osteopetrosis can also have brain abnormalities, intellectual disability, or recurrent seizures (epilepsy).

A few individuals have been diagnosed with intermediate autosomal osteopetrosis (IAO), a form of the disorder that can have either an autosomal dominant or an autosomal recessive pattern of inheritance. The signs and symptoms of this condition become noticeable in childhood and include an increased risk of bone fracture and anemia. People with this form of the disorder typically do not have life-threatening bone marrow abnormalities. However, some affected individuals have had abnormal calcium deposits (calcifications) in the brain, intellectual disability, and a form of kidney disease called renal tubular acidosis. [from MedlinePlus Genetics]

Familial hypomagnesemia with hypercalciuria and nephrocalcinosis is a progressive renal disorder characterized by excessive urinary Ca(2+) and Mg(2+) excretion. There is progressive loss of kidney function, and in about 50% of cases, the need for renal replacement therapy arises as early as the second decade of life (summary by Muller et al., 2006). Amelogenesis imperfecta may also be present in some patients (Bardet et al., 2016). A similar disorder with renal magnesium wasting, renal failure, and nephrocalcinosis (HOMG5; 248190) is caused by mutations in another tight-junction gene, CLDN19 (610036), and is distinguished by the association of severe ocular involvement. For a discussion of phenotypic and genetic heterogeneity of familial hypomagnesemia, see HOMG1 (602014). [from OMIM]

Individuals with hereditary distal renal tubular acidosis (dRTA) typically present in infancy with failure to thrive, although later presentations can occur, especially in individuals with autosomal dominant SLC4A1-dRTA. Initial clinical manifestations can also include emesis, polyuria, polydipsia, constipation, diarrhea, decreased appetite, and episodes of dehydration. Electrolyte manifestations include hyperchloremic non-anion gap metabolic acidosis and hypokalemia. Renal complications of dRTA include nephrocalcinosis, nephrolithiasis, medullary cysts, and impaired renal function. Additional manifestations include bone demineralization (rickets, osteomalacia), growth deficiency, sensorineural hearing loss (in ATP6V0A4-, ATP6V1B1-, and FOXI1-dRTA), and hereditary hemolytic anemia (in some individuals with SLC4A1-dRTA). [from GeneReviews]

HDR syndrome (HDRS), also known as Barakat syndrome, is a heterogeneous disorder characterized by the triad of Hypoparathyroidism (H), nerve Deafness (D) and/or Renal disease (R). Variable clinical features include hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism, polycystic ovaries, congenital heart disease, retinitis pigmentosa, and cognitive disability (Barakat et al., 2018). [from OMIM]

Individuals with hereditary distal renal tubular acidosis (dRTA) typically present in infancy with failure to thrive, although later presentations can occur, especially in individuals with autosomal dominant SLC4A1-dRTA. Initial clinical manifestations can also include emesis, polyuria, polydipsia, constipation, diarrhea, decreased appetite, and episodes of dehydration. Electrolyte manifestations include hyperchloremic non-anion gap metabolic acidosis and hypokalemia. Renal complications of dRTA include nephrocalcinosis, nephrolithiasis, medullary cysts, and impaired renal function. Additional manifestations include bone demineralization (rickets, osteomalacia), growth deficiency, sensorineural hearing loss (in ATP6V0A4-, ATP6V1B1-, and FOXI1-dRTA), and hereditary hemolytic anemia (in some individuals with SLC4A1-dRTA). [from GeneReviews]

A type of renal tubular acidosis characterized by a failure of acid secretion by the alpha intercalated cells of the cortical collecting duct of the distal nephron. The urine cannot be acidified below a pH of 5.3, associated with acidemia and hypokalemia. [from HPO]