In three pediatric cases of Carney Complex, diverse clinical presentations led to serious complications requiring individualized management strategies, including bilateral adrenalectomy.
Carney Complex exhibits significant clinical heterogeneity and lacks a consistent genotype-phenotype correlation, necessitating individualized multidisciplinary management and lifelong surveillance for life-threatening complications like recurrent cardiac myxomas.
Carney Complex (CNC) is a rare genetic disorder characterized by multiple endocrine and nonendocrine neoplasms, primarily driven by mutations in the PRKAR1A gene. This study explores the clinical heterogeneity in CNC patients, with a focus on adrenal and extra adrenal involvement and its impact on patient outcomes. We present three pediatric cases with unique clinical manifestations. Case 1: A 12-year-old female with ACTH-independent cyclic Cushing syndrome due to primary pigmented nodular adrenocortical disease (PPNAD). The patient's condition progressed, leading to complications such as obesity, depression, and short stature, ultimately requiring bilateral adrenalectomy. Case 2: A 9-year-old male presented with an intranasal osteochondromyxoma and a large cell calcifying sertoli cell tumor. In the followup he developed hypocortisolism secondary to ACTH deficiency, with further complications including central precocious puberty and a growth hormone-secreting pituitary adenoma. Case 3: A 12-year-old female with adrenal insufficiency due to ACTH deficiency, complicated by a pituitary adenoma and a recurrent cardiac myxoma. Over time, the patient developed ACTH-independent Cushing syndrome secondary to PPNAD, necessitating bilateral adrenalectomy. Multiple fusiform aneurysms were also discovered after the recurrence of atrial myxoma. All cases highlight the absence of a consistent genotype-phenotype correlation in CNC, emphasizing the need for individualized management strategies. The findings underscore the complexity of diagnosing and treating CNC, particularly in pediatric populations, and call for further research into the underlying molecular mechanisms to develop more targeted therapies.
Altun et al. (2026) studied this question. In three pediatric cases of Carney Complex, diverse clinical presentations led to serious complications requiring individualized management strategies, including bilateral adrenalectomy.