Comorbidities in pediatric patients with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome

Objective: To investigate the frequency of various nonorthostatic complaints in children with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS).

Study design: We used our autonomic laboratory database to identify all pediatric patients with traditionally defined POTS who had completed the Ohio Dysautonomia Survey (ODYSA). The responses of the patients to questions targeting various autonomic complaints, including syncope, gastrointestinal symptoms, sleep disturbances, headaches, urinary symptoms, chronic pain, and Raynaud-like symptoms, were collected and analyzed.

Results: A total of 53 pediatric patients completed the ODYSA questionnaire. The participants reported high frequencies of sleep abnormalities, chronic pain, Raynaud-like symptoms, and gastrointestinal abnormalities, with lower rates of headaches, syncope, and urinary complaints.

Conclusions: Our findings demonstrate the occurrence of various nonorthostatic symptoms in pediatric patients with POTS. These findings suggest the need for an interdisciplinary approach to the treatment and management of POTS, as well as for further investigation into the mechanisms that lead to the concurrent presentation of both orthostatic and nonorthostatic symptoms in these patients.