OBJECTIVE: To describe the effects of 24 months of teriparatide therapy in an adult with hypophosphatasia, which thus far has no established medical treatment. METHODS: A 75-year-old woman with hypophosphatasia was treated with ergocalciferol and calcium supplements for 2 years. She had sustained multiple spontaneous and low-trauma fractures since she was 10 years old. Baseline biochemical values (and reference ranges) were as follows: serum total alkaline phosphatase ranged from 14 to 17 U/L (30 to 110), bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (BSALP) was 5 U/L (14 to 43), serum phosphorus was elevated at 5.4 mg/dL (2.6 to 4.4), and pyridoxal 5'-phosphate was high at 250 ng/mL (5 to 30). At baseline, she had mild secondary hyperparathyroidism (intact parathyroid hormone, 76 pg/mL; reference range, 10 to 65), which was corrected by the calcium supplementation and vitamin D therapy. Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scanning in 2003 showed L1-L4 bone mineral density (BMD) of 0.786 g/cm2, T score of -3.3, and Z score of -1.7; DXA also showed femoral neck BMD of 0.740 g/cm2, T score of -2.5, and Z score of -0.5. During walking, the patient sustained a low-trauma fracture in a metatarsal. Teriparatide, synthetic parathyroid hormone(1-34), in a dosage of 20 microg subcutaneously was given daily from April 2004 until June 2006. RESULTS: After about 1.5 years of teriparatide therapy, BSALP reached the lower end of the reference range at 16 U/L, and after 24 months of continuous teriparatide treatment, both serum total alkaline phosphatase and BSALP normalized at 30 U/L and 18 U/L, respectively. Pyridoxal 5'-phosphate declined from a baseline of 250 to 188 ng/mL after 17 months of treatment. Urinary N-telopeptide increased from a baseline of <6 to 19 after 17 months and to 70 bone collagen equivalents/mmol creatinine after 24 months of anabolic therapy. Repeated DXA scanning showed a substantial improvement in lumbar spine BMD and stability in hip BMD. The patient experienced no clinical fractures or adverse events during teriparatide therapy. CONCLUSION: In one woman with adult hypophosphatasia, 2 years of teriparatide treatment improved biochemical markers of bone remodeling and increased skeletal mineralization. Teriparatide may prove to be a viable treatment for adult hypophosphatasia; thus, this intervention warrants further evaluation.
OBJECTIVE: To describe the effects of 24 months of teriparatide therapy in an adult with hypophosphatasia, which thus far has no established medical treatment. METHODS: A 75-year-old woman with hypophosphatasia was treated with ergocalciferol and calcium supplements for 2 years. She had sustained multiple spontaneous and low-trauma fractures since she was 10 years old. Baseline biochemical values (and reference ranges) were as follows: serum total alkaline phosphatase ranged from 14 to 17 U/L (30 to 110), bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (BSALP) was 5 U/L (14 to 43), serum phosphorus was elevated at 5.4 mg/dL (2.6 to 4.4), and pyridoxal 5'-phosphate was high at 250 ng/mL (5 to 30). At baseline, she had mild secondary hyperparathyroidism (intact parathyroid hormone, 76 pg/mL; reference range, 10 to 65), which was corrected by the calcium supplementation and vitamin D therapy. Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scanning in 2003 showed L1-L4 bone mineral density (BMD) of 0.786 g/cm2, T score of -3.3, and Z score of -1.7; DXA also showed femoral neck BMD of 0.740 g/cm2, T score of -2.5, and Z score of -0.5. During walking, the patient sustained a low-trauma fracture in a metatarsal. Teriparatide, synthetic parathyroid hormone(1-34), in a dosage of 20 microg subcutaneously was given daily from April 2004 until June 2006. RESULTS: After about 1.5 years of teriparatide therapy, BSALP reached the lower end of the reference range at 16 U/L, and after 24 months of continuous teriparatide treatment, both serum total alkaline phosphatase and BSALP normalized at 30 U/L and 18 U/L, respectively. Pyridoxal 5'-phosphate declined from a baseline of 250 to 188 ng/mL after 17 months of treatment. Urinary N-telopeptide increased from a baseline of <6 to 19 after 17 months and to 70 bone collagen equivalents/mmol creatinine after 24 months of anabolic therapy. Repeated DXA scanning showed a substantial improvement in lumbar spine BMD and stability in hip BMD. The patient experienced no clinical fractures or adverse events during teriparatide therapy. CONCLUSION: In one woman with adult hypophosphatasia, 2 years of teriparatide treatment improved biochemical markers of bone remodeling and increased skeletal mineralization. Teriparatide may prove to be a viable treatment for adult hypophosphatasia; thus, this intervention warrants further evaluation.