Loan, 23 years old, 1.42 m tall, weighs 34 kg, undeveloped breasts, no menstruation due to Turner syndrome, a chromosomal disorder.
On November 9, BS.CK II Tran Thuy Ngan, Department of Endocrinology – Diabetes, Tam Anh General Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City, said that Loan is in adulthood but has ovarian failure, estrogen hormone is very low, has Full symptoms of Turner syndrome include short stature, short neck, undeveloped breasts, a mature uterus, no menstruation… Turner syndrome is a genetic disorder linked to the X chromosome and Y.
“Loan discovered the disease at an adult stage, so she lost the opportunity to develop height and sexual function,” said Dr. Ngan. Before that, Loan went to many places to be examined and was diagnosed with uterine ectropion, undeveloped ovaries, and after adjusting her diet, she still did not gain weight. This time examined at Tam Anh hospital, Dr. Ngan determined that if not treated, Loan would be at risk of osteoporosis and cardiovascular, kidney, and thyroid abnormalities. Loan is compensated for the hormone estrogen – progesterone, can have menstruation but is unlikely to be able to reproduce and must monitor Turner’s health to prevent complications.
The patient’s blood is taken for testing. Image: Tam Anh General Hospital
An estimated one in 2,000 female babies is born with Turner syndrome, according to Dr. Ngan. This syndrome is not hereditary, usually caused by genetic changes during fertilization leading to abnormal changes in the X and Y chromosomes.
Symptoms of Turner syndrome are diverse and vary from patient to patient. The two main characteristics are low self-esteem and ovarian dysfunction. Patients also suffer from mild to serious defects such as astigmatism or nearsightedness, cardiovascular disease, kidney defects (horseshoe-shaped kidneys, kidney aplasia), increased risk of urinary infections, autoimmune thyroiditis, decreased or hearing loss, ear infection…
To diagnose Turner syndrome, in addition to clinical symptoms, patients need a karyotype test, measuring the levels of FSH, LH, estrogen, progesterone, thyroid function (including hormones FT4, TSH), Echocardiography and urinary ultrasound to detect abnormalities in the cardiovascular, kidney and urinary systems. Patients over 18 years old can have their hearing assessed and bone density measured.
Turner syndrome treatment regimen includes using growth hormone to help increase height for patients 5-6 years old, sex hormone replacement treatment from 12 years old and older, and reproductive counseling support. Doctors periodically screen and treat each patient’s problem.