http://dx.doi.org/10.5455/2320-1770.ijrcog20130955 Volume 2 · Issue 3 Page 485
International Journal of Reproduction, Contraception, Obstetrics and Gynecology
Babre VM et al. Int J Reprod Contracept Obstet Gynecol. 2013 Sep;2(3):485-487
www.ijrcog.org pISSN 2320-1770 | eISSN 2320-1789
Case Report
A rare case of Swyer’s syndrome
Vijaya M. Babre*, Kirti Bendre, Geeta Niyogi
INTRODUCTION
Swyer’s syndrome was first described by Jim Swyer in
1955. Affected individuals have an XY karyotype but
external and internal genitalia are of the female type. The
gonads are usually replaced by fibrous streaks. Patients
usually present in adolescence with primary amenorrhea
and lack of secondary sexual characters. Swyer’s
syndrome is a rare entity incidence being 1:30,000.
Purpose of reporting this case is its rarity and importance
of diagnosis of XY female as there is high incidence of
gonad malignancy, in affected person.
CASE REPORT
A 17 year old girl came to OPD with her mother with
complaints of primary amenorrhea and no development
of breast.
There was no history of cyclical abdominal pain,
hormonal intake, radiation exposure, chemotherapy or
any central nervous symptoms such as headache or visual
disturbances. There was no past significant surgical
history. There was neither history of childhood
tuberculosis nor history of Koch’s in the family.
She was the first child of a non-consanguineous marriage.
She has one younger sister of 15 yrs old who has got her
menarche at age of 14 yrs.
On general examination she was 143 cm. tall and weighs
39 kg. Body mass index was (BMI) 18 kg/m
2
.There was
no evidence of acanthosis nigricans, acne, hirsutism,
goiter, cushingoid features of Turner’s stigmata, like
webbed neck, cubitus valgus. Examination of secondary
sexual characteristics revealed no breast development
with hypopigmented areola. Public and axillary hair were
sparse.
Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, K.J. Somaiya Medical College and Research Centre, Sion 400022, Mumbai,
Maharashtra, India
Received: 23 July 2013
Accepted: 4 August 2013
*Correspondence:
Dr. Vijaya M. Babre,
E-mail: drvbabre@gmail.com
© 2013 Babre VM et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons
Attribution Non-Commercial License, which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction
in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
ABSTRACT
Swyer syndrome was first described by Jim Swyer in 1955. It is a form of “Pure Gonadal Dysgenesis”. The affected
female has 46XY karyotype. A 17 year old unmarried girl came with complaints of primary amenorrhea, non
development of breast. On examination she has normal built. Examination of secondary sexual characters revealed no
breast development, pubic and axillary hairs were sparse. Female type of genitalia with vaginal opening. Serum FSH
was 117.5 mIU/ml. Thyroid and Prolactin was in normal range. Karyotype showed genotype of 46XY. Diagnostic
laparoscopy showed streak gonads, small uterus, and normal fallopian tubes. Diagnosis of Swyer syndrome was
made. Patient was started on hormonal replacement therapy (HRT). In Swyer syndrome there is a mutation of SRY
gene leads failure of development of testis. Mullerian duct development takes place by default. These patients can
have normal sexual intercourse and can become pregnant by donor oocyte. They need to be on HRT. The risk of
gonadoblastoma and dysgerminoma are very high in streak gonads so bilateral gonadectomy is advised.
Keywords: Swyer’s syndrome, Primary amenorrhea
DOI: 10.5455/2320-1770.ijrcog20130955