Longitudinal adaptive behavioral outcomes in Ogden syndrome by seizure status and therapeutic intervention

Abstract Ogden syndrome, also known as NAA10‐related neurodevelopmental syndrome, is a rare genetic condition associated with pathogenic variants in the NAA10 N‐terminal acetylation family of proteins. The condition was initially described in 2011 and is characterized by a range of neurologic symptoms, including intellectual disability and seizures, as well as developmental delays, psychiatric symptoms, congenital heart abnormalities, hypotonia, and others. Previously published articles have described the etiology and phenotype of Ogden syndrome, mostly with retrospective analyses; herein, we report prospective data concerning its progress over time. The current study involves a total of 58 distinct participants; of these, 43 caregivers were interviewed using the Vineland‐3 and answered a survey regarding therapy and other questions, 10 of whom completed the Vineland‐3 but did not answer the survey, and 5 participants who answered the survey but have not yet performed the Vineland‐3 due to language constraints. The average age at the time of the most recent assessment was 12.4 years, with individuals ranging in age from 11 months to 40.2 years. Using Vineland‐3 scores, we show decline in cognitive function over time in individuals with Ogden syndrome ( n = 53). Sub‐domain analysis found the decline to be present across all modalities. In addition, we describe the nature of seizures in this condition in greater detail, as well as investigate how already‐available non‐pharmaceutical therapies impact individuals with NAA10‐related neurodevelopmental syndrome. Additional investigation between seizure and non‐seizure groups showed no significant difference in adaptive behavior outcomes. A therapy investigation showed speech therapy to be the most commonly used therapy by individuals with NAA10‐related neurodevelopmental syndrome, followed by occupational and physical therapy, with more severely affected individuals receiving more types of therapy than their less‐severe counterparts. Early intervention analysis was only significantly effective for speech therapy, with analyses of all other therapies being non‐significant. Our study portrays the decline in cognitive function over time of individuals within our cohort, independent of seizure status, and therapies being received, and highlights the urgent need for the development of effective treatments for Ogden syndrome.