Autoimmune polyendocrine syndrome primary prevention

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Akshun Kalia M.B.B.S.[2]

Effective measures for the primary prevention of autoimmune polyendocrine syndrome (APS) include patient education and screening. Autoimmune polyendocrine syndrome may be inherited in autosomal recessive (APS type 1), autosomal dominant (APS type 2) or X linked fashion (APS type 3) and therefore educating the relatives about the importance of a positive family history is necessary. In addition, screening should be done for first degree relatives of patients (parents, siblings or children) with APS for the presence of autoantibodies.

Effective measures for the primary prevention of autoimmune polyendocrine syndrome (APS) include:^{[1][2][3][4][5]}

• Patient education: Autoimmune polyendocrine syndrome may be inherited in autosomal recessive (APS type 1), autosomal dominant (APS type 2) or X linked fashion (APS type 3) and therefore educating relatives about presence of APS in family is necessary.
• Screening should be done for first degree relatives of patients (parents, siblings or children) with APS for auto-antibodies such as 21- hydroxylase, 17-hydroxylase, thyroid peroxidase, parietal cell, anti-intrinsic factor and islet cell antibodies.
• Recent research has shown that in APS, autoantibodies can develop at any age and there is insufficient evidence to suggest optimum interval between testing. For example, patients of celiac disease are often asymptomatic and are detected only after screening for transglutaminase autoantibodies. Thus, individuals with a family history of APS should be re-screened for autoantibodies at appropriate intervals even if their initial autoantibody tests are negative.

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