title: Nasal nitric oxide in atypical primary ciliary dyskinesia.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Atypical cases of primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) may present with minimal transmission electron microscopy (TEM) defects. The diagnostic role of nasal nitric oxide (nNO) levels was evaluated in those patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty-four children with recurrent pneumonia were studied with ciliary motion analysis, TEM, and nNO.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Investigations indicated PCD in 12 patients, secondary ciliary dyskinesia (SCD) in 50 patients, and normal results in 2 patients. In 4 of 50 children with SCD, atypical PCD was considered possible. The mean (+/- SD) nNO was 130 +/- 46.95 parts per billion in children affected by PCD, 127.79 +/- 68.58 parts per billion in atypical patients, and 760 +/- 221 parts per billion in children with SCD. Three to 5 months later, the nNO level was 132.75 +/- 55.76 parts per billion in children with atypical disease and 778.00 +/- 197 parts per billion in children with SCD.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Low levels of nNO may help to identify patients with atypical PCD.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Pediatrics, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy. Electronic address: m.pifferi@med.unipi.it.
authors.forename: Massimo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pifferi
authors.affiliation: Departments of Radiology, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Davide
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Caramella
authors.affiliation: Electron Microscopy Unit, University of Ancona, Ancona, Italy.
authors.forename: Angela M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Cangiotti
authors.affiliation: Departments of Pediatrics, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Ragazzo
authors.affiliation: Departments of Pediatrics, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Pierantonio
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Macchia
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, University of Verona, Verona, Italy.
authors.forename: Attilio L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Boner
mesh_terms: D001706:Biopsy; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002925:Ciliary Motility Disorders / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007619:Kartagener Syndrome / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D009297:Nasal Mucosa / Q000473:pathology; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000032:analysis*; D018410:Pneumonia, Bacterial / Q000473:pathology; D012008:Recurrence
chemical_list: D009569:Nitric Oxide