Spectrum and Prevalence of Mutations Involving BrS1- Through BrS12-Susceptibility Genes in a Cohort of Unrelated Patients Referred for Brugada Syndrome Genetic Testing Implications for Genetic Testing

ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to provide the spectrum and prevalence of mutations in the 12 Brugada syndrome (BrS)–susceptibility genes discovered to date in a single large cohort of unrelated BrS patients.BackgroundBrS is a potentially lethal heritable arrhythmia syndrome diagnosed electrocardiographically by coved-type ST-segment elevation in the right precordial leads (V1 to V3; type 1 Brugada electrocardiographic [ECG] pattern) and the presence of a personal/family history of cardiac events.MethodsUsing polymerase chain reaction, denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography, and DNA sequencing, comprehensive mutational analysis of BrS1- through BrS12-susceptibility genes was performed in 129 unrelated patients with possible/probable BrS (46 with clinically diagnosed BrS [ECG pattern plus personal/family history of a cardiac event] and 83 with a type 1 BrS ECG pattern only).ResultsOverall, 27 patients (21%) had a putative pathogenic mutation, absent in 1,400 Caucasian reference alleles, including 21 patients with an SCN5A mutation, 2 with a CACNB2B mutation, and 1 each with a KCNJ8 mutation, a KCND3 mutation, an SCN1Bb mutation, and an HCN4 mutation. The overall mutation yield was 23% in the type 1 BrS ECG pattern-only patients versus 17% in the clinically diagnosed BrS patients and was significantly greater among young men <20 years of age with clinically diagnosed BrS and among patients who had a prolonged PQ interval.ConclusionsWe identified putative pathogenic mutations in ∼20% of our BrS cohort, with BrS genes 2 through 12 accounting for