A test that measures walking speed over 10 meters (33 feet) offers a simpler and less demanding alternative to the commonly used six-minute walk test for evaluating walking performance in Pompe disease, and may be a better option for patients who have difficulty covering longer distances. In a French…
Disease progression
Involvement in the brain and spinal cord’s white matter is common in Pompe disease, particularly in the infantile-onset form, according to a review of published studies. Other affected parts of the brain and spinal cord, or central nervous system (CNS), were the gray matter and blood vessels in the…
A woman in Canada with atypical and slowly progressive onset of muscle weakness affecting her eyelids, face, and throat muscles had shown symptoms for decades before being diagnosed with late-onset Pompe disease (LOPD), according to a study describing her case. Doctors considered several neuromuscular diseases before arriving at the…
“The Pompe Community Diaries” is a series that follows the journeys, musings, and challenges of those in the Pompe disease community. This week, I’m introducing Steve Bersani. Steve served as an officer in the Boston Police Department for 30 years before retiring in 2018. He operated in…
Young patients with late-onset Pompe disease (LOPD) who do not yet show disease symptoms should be regularly monitored for timely identification of symptoms so that treatment can be started early, a study suggested. Current diagnostic procedures enable early diagnosis of LOPD even in pre-symptomatic stages, said the researchers, who…
Many adults with late-onset Pompe disease (LOPD) see their own health status as declining over time, with difficulty swallowing and speaking, and scoliosis (sideways curvature of the spine) being burdensome symptoms for those on enzyme replacement treatment (ERT) for more than 15 years, a survey study has found.
Three genes related to the regulation of immune responses — GPNMB, CALML6, and TRIM7 — show abnormal activity in immune cells infiltrating the muscles of people with infantile-onset Pompe disease, according to a new study from researchers in China. All three were found to be associated with regulatory T-cells, a…
A new noninvasive imaging technique was found to be better than standard approaches like MRI or ultrasound for visualizing diseased muscles in people with late-onset Pompe disease (LOPD), according to a recent study. The technique, called multispectral optoacoustic tomography (MSOT), uses light and sound waves to visualize the deeper…
Damage to the blood vessels in the brain is a common but under-recognized manifestation of late-onset Pompe disease (LOPD), according to a recent study from China. Among a small group of LOPD patients, various abnormalities were observed that affected both small and large blood vessels. Given the observed prevalence…
A 1-year-old boy with infantile-onset Pompe disease (IOPD) showed improved muscle strength and signs of less heart inflammation four months after receiving gene therapy, according to a case report. The findings in this case were confirmed with cardiac MRI, a noninvasive test that uses radio waves and magnets to…
Recent Posts
- Raising a child who has never known life without Pompe disease
- Staying on Pompe therapy during pregnancy, breastfeeding is safe: Study
- Watching my daughter suffer through infusions is an emotional tug-of-war
- Noninvasive muscle test may measure Pompe disease severity: Study
- Learning to translate the language of Pompe disease