The clinical consequences of sucrase-isomaltase deficiency

Primary sucrase-isomaltase deficiency, originally thought to be a homozygous recessive disorder, has been found to have numerous genetic variants that alone or in combination (compound heterozygosity) express varying degrees of clinical illness, most commonly causing chronic diarrhea, abdominal pain, and bloating. These symptoms are also present with secondary sucrase-isomaltase deficiency. Recent investigations are providing evidence that sucrase-isomaltase deficiency is more prevalent and of greater clinical significance than previously suspected. Further research is required to correlate the specific genotypes and phenotypes with their clinical expressions and to determine the most appropriate treatment algorithm for these patients.