Pearls & Oy-sters: Late-Onset Cobalamin C Deficiency Presenting With Subacute Combined Degeneration

Abstract

Cobalamin C (CblC) deficiency is a rare inborn error in cobalamin (vitamin B12) metabolism which results in impaired intracellular processing of dietary vitamin B12. This leads to a wide range of clinical manifestations including cognitive impairment, psychiatric symptoms, myelopathy, thrombotic events, glomerulonephritis, and pulmonary arterial hypertension. CblC deficiency typically presents in the pediatric population but can also present in adulthood. Diagnosis in adults can be challenging due to the rarity of this condition and its myriad clinical presentations. CblC deficiency is treatable, so early diagnosis is important in preventing permanent neurologic damage. Although CblC deficiency results from a defect in vitamin B12 metabolism, B12 levels remain normal. Diagnosis depends on testing metabolites altered by vitamin B12 dysfunction such as methylmalonic acid (MMA) and homocysteine. We presented a case of a 20-year-old woman who presented with chronic progressive lower extremity weakness and sensory changes. She was eventually diagnosed with subacute combined degeneration because of CblC deficiency and effectively treated. This case highlights the importance of considering inborn errors of metabolism in adult patients and including testing of metabolites such as MMA and homocysteine when suspecting vitamin B12 dysfunction.