[Two Cases of Pseudo-Bartter Syndrome in Childhood: When to Suspect a Rare Onset Pattern of Cystic Fibrosis]

Abstract

Cystic fibrosis is a multisystem disease with extremely variable onset, symptoms and course. One of the onset modality but also a complication of the disease is the pseudo-Bartter syndrome, characterized by hyponatremia, hypochloremic dehydration and metabolic alkalosis in absence of any renal disease. This syndrome occurs more frequently in the first year of life and has a peak in the summer. In this article, we describe two cases of cystic fibrosis associated with pseudo-Bartter syndrome in childhood. Excluding every possible cause of metabolic alkalosis associated with hyponatremia was crucial for our diagnostic pathway, and the experience gained with the first case helped a lot with the second one.

Keywords: cystic fibrosis; hyponatremia; metabolic alkalosis; pediatrics; pseudo-Bartter syndrome.