Rapid Skeletal Turnover in a Radiographic Mimic of Osteopetrosis

Among the high bone mass disorders, the osteopetroses reflect osteoclast failure that prevents skeletal resorption and turnover leading to reduced bone growth and modeling and characteristic histopathological and radiographic findings. We report an 11-year-old boy with a new syndrome that radiographically mimics osteopetrosis but features rapid skeletal turnover. He presented at age 21 months with a parasellar, osteoclast-rich giant cell granuloma. Radiographs showed a dense skull, generalized osteosclerosis, and cortical thickening, medullary cavity narrowing, and diminished modeling of tubular bones. His serum alkaline phosphatase was > 5,000 IU/L (normal < 850). After partial resection, the granuloma re-grew but then regressed and stabilized during three years of uncomplicated pamidronate treatment. His hyperphosphatasemia transiently diminished but all bone turnover markers, especially those of apposition, remained elevated. Two years after pamidronate therapy stopped, BMD z-scores reached + 9.1 and + 5.8 in the lumbar spine and hip, respectively, and iliac crest histopathology confirmed rapid bone remodeling. Serum multiplex biomarker profiling was striking for low sclerostin. Mutation analysis was negative for activation of LRP4, LRP5, or TGFβ1 and for defective SOST, OPG, RANKL, RANK, SQSTM1, or sFRP1. Microarray showed no notable copy number variation. Studies of his non-consanguineous parents were unremarkable. The etiology and pathogenesis of this unique syndrome are unknown.