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Disease at a Glance

Summary
Congenital analbuminemia (CAA) is a rare disorder characterized by the absence or very low levels of human serum albumin (HSA). Although albumin is the most abundant plasma protein and has many functions, patients with CAA present with only a few mild clinical signs, such as fatigue, low blood pressure, and swelling (edema). However, CAA patients may loss fat tissue (lipodystrophy) and present with high cholesterol, which may result in early atherosclerosis and heart problems. Rarely, CAA may be complicated by hypercoagulability (when the blood tends to clot too much), osteoporosis (which causes bones to become weak and brittle) and respiratory tract infections. It is more severe in the fetus or during early infancy. CAA is caused by genetic changes in the ALB gene. Inheritance is autosomal recessive.
Summary
Congenital analbuminemia (CAA) is a rare disorder characterized by the absence or very low levels of human serum albumin (HSA). Although albumin is the most abundant plasma protein and has many functions, patients with CAA present with only a few mild clinical signs, such as fatigue, low blood pressure, and swelling (edema). However, CAA patients may loss fat tissue (lipodystrophy) and present with high cholesterol, which may result in early atherosclerosis and heart problems. Rarely, CAA may be complicated by hypercoagulability (when the blood tends to clot too much), osteoporosis (which causes bones to become weak and brittle) and respiratory tract infections. It is more severe in the fetus or during early infancy. CAA is caused by genetic changes in the ALB gene. Inheritance is autosomal recessive.Congenital analbuminemia (CAA) is a rare disorder characterized by the absence or very low levels of human serum albumin (HSA). Although albumin is the most abundant plasma protein and has many functions, patients with CAA present with only a few mild clinical signs, such as fatigue, low blood pressure, and swelling (edema). However, CAA patients may loss fat tissue (lipodystrophy) and present with high cholesterol, which may result in early atherosclerosis and heart problems. Rarely, CAA may be complicated by hypercoagulability (when the blood tends to clot too much), osteoporosis (which causes bones to become weak and brittle) and respiratory tract infections. It is more severe in the fetus or during early infancy. CAA is caused by genetic changes in the ALB gene. Inheritance is autosomal recessive.
Resource(s) for Medical Professionals and Scientists on This Disease:
  • Orphanet  provides GARD with information for this disease.
  • RARe-SOURCE™  offers rare disease gene variant annotations and links to rare disease gene literature.

About Congenital analbuminemia

Many rare diseases have limited information. Currently GARD aims to provide the following information for this disease:

  • Population Estimate:Fewer than 1,000 people in the U.S. have thisdisease.
  • Symptoms:May start to appear as a Newborn and as an Infant.
  • Cause:This disease is caused by a change in the genetic material (DNA).
  • Organizations:GARD is not currently aware of organizations specific to this disease.
  • Categories:Genetic DiseasesBlood Diseases
When Do Symptoms of Congenital analbuminemia Begin?
Symptoms of this disease may start to appear as a Newborn and as an Infant.

The age symptoms may begin to appear differs between diseases. Symptoms may begin in a single age range, or during several age ranges. The symptoms from some diseases may begin at any age. Knowing when symptoms began to appear can help medical providers find the correct diagnosis.
Prenatal
Before Birth
Newborn Selected
Birth-4 weeks
Infant Selected
1-23 months
Child
2-11 years
Adolescent
12-18 years
Adult
19-65 years
Older Adult
65+ years
Symptoms may start to appear as a Newborn and as an Infant.
This information comes from Orphanet

Symptoms

The types of symptoms experienced, and their intensity, may vary among people with this disease. Your experience may be different from others, and you should consult your primary care provider (PCP) for more information.

This list does not include all possible symptoms related to this disease, but they may include:

10 Symptoms

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List View
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List View

Body Systems

Symptoms related to this disease may affect different systems of the body. Use the 'Filter and Sort' function to learn more about which body system(s) are affected by this disease and their associated symptom(s).

Medical Term

Fatigue

Frequency
Uncommon
Frequent
Frequent
Always
Description

A subjective feeling of tiredness characterized by a lack of energy and motivation.

A subjective feeling of tiredness characterized by a lack of energy and motivation.

Synonym

Fatigue; Tired; Tiredness

Fatigue; Tired; Tiredness

10 Symptoms
This information comes from the Human Phenotype Ontology (HPO)

Causes

What Causes This Disease?

Genetic Changes

Congenital analbuminemia is caused by harmful genetic changes, also known as pathogenic variants. Genetic changes can occur randomly, as a result of environmental factors, from parents passing them down to their children, or a combination of these. Additionally, they can occur before birth or at any time during a person's life. Learn more about genetic diseases from the National Library of Medicine (NLM).

If you suspect you may have this disease, you may want to start collecting your family health history. Information such as other family members who have had similar symptoms, when their/your symptoms first appeared, or exposures to any potential disease-causing environmental factors should be discussed with your medical team. This tool from the Surgeon General can help you collect your family health history.
Can This Disease Be Passed Down From Parent to Child?

Yes. It is possible for a biological parent to pass down pathogenic variants that cause or increase the chances of getting this disease to their child. This is known as inheritance. Knowing whether other family members have previously had this disease, also known as family health history, can be very important information for your medical team. This tool from the Surgeon General can help you collect your family health history.

There are multiple ways, or patterns, a disease can be inherited depending on the gene(s) involved. Based on GARD's current pathogenic variant data, this disease can be inherited in the following pattern(s):

Autosomal Recessive

"Autosomal" means the gene involved is located on one of the numbered chromosomes. "Recessive" means that a child must inherit two copies of the pathogenic variant, one from each biological parent, to be affected by the disease. A carrier is a person who only has one copy of the pathogenic variant. A carrier usually doesn't show any symptoms of the disease.

If both biological parents are carriers, there is a 25% their child inherits both copies of the pathogenic variant and is affected by the disease. Additionally, there is a 50% chance their child inherits only one copy of the pathogenic variant and is a carrier.

Learn more about inheritance patterns from the National Library of Medicine (NLM).

Advocacy and Support Groups

How Can Patient Organizations Help?

Patient organizations can help patients and families connect. They build public awareness of the disease and are a driving force behind research to improve patients' lives. They may offer online and in-person resources to help people live well with their disease. Many collaborate with medical experts and researchers.

Services of patient organizations differ, but may include:

  • Ways to connect to others and share personal stories
  • Easy-to-read information
  • Up-to-date treatment and research information
  • Patient registries
  • Lists of specialists or specialty centers
  • Financial aid and travel resources

Please note: GARD provides organizations for informational purposes only and not as an endorsement of their services. Please contact an organization directly if you have questions about the information or resources it provides.

Patient Organizations

4 Organizations

Organization Name

Who They Serve

Helpful Links

Country

EveryLife Foundation for Rare Diseases
People With

Rare Diseases

Helpful Links
Country

United States

Genetic Alliance
People With

Rare Diseases

Helpful Links
Country

United States

Global Genes
People With

Rare Diseases

Helpful Links
Country

United States

National Organization for Rare Disorders
People With

Rare Diseases

Helpful Links
Country

United States

Participating in Clinical Studies

Clinical studies are part of clinical research and at the heart of all medical advances, including rare diseases. Participating in research helps researchers ultimately uncover better ways to treat, prevent, diagnose, and understand human diseases.

What Are Clinical Studies?

Clinical studies are medical research involving people as participants. There are two main types of clinical studies:

  1. Clinical trials determine if a new test or treatment for a disease is effective and safe by comparing groups receiving different tests/treatments.
  2. Observational studies involve recording changes over time among a specific group of people in their natural settings.
Learn more about clinical trials from this U.S. Food & Drug Administration webpage.

Why Participate in Clinical Studies?

People participate in clinical trials for many reasons. People with a disease may participate to receive the newest possible treatment and additional care from clinical study staff as well as to help others living with the same or similar disease. Healthy volunteers may participate to help others and to contribute to moving science forward.

To find the right clinical study we recommend you consult your doctors, other trusted medical professionals, and patient organizations. Additionally, you can use ClinicalTrials.gov to search for clinical studies by disease, terms, or location.

Join the All of Us Research Program!

The All of Us Research Program is inviting 1 million people from all backgrounds across the U.S. to help build one of the most diverse health databases in history. Researchers will use the data to learn how our biology, lifestyle, and environment affect health. This may one day help them find ways to treat and prevent diseases.

What if There Are No Available Clinical Studies?

ResearchMatch helps connect people interested in research studies  with researchers from top medical centers across the United States. Anyone from the U.S. can register with this free program funded by NIH. Researchers from participating institutions use the database to search for and invite patients or healthy volunteers who meet their study criteria to participate.

What Are Clinical Studies?

Clinical studies are medical research involving people as participants. There are two main types of clinical studies:
  1. Clinical trials determine if a new test or treatment for a disease is effective and safe by comparing groups receiving different tests/treatments.
  2. Observational studies involve recording changes over time among a specific group of people in their natural settings.
Learn more about clinical trials from this U.S. Food & Drug Administration webpage.
Read More

Why Participate in Clinical Studies?

People participate in clinical trials for many reasons. People with a disease may participate to receive the newest possible treatment and additional care from clinical study staff as well as to help others living with the same or similar disease. Healthy volunteers may participate to help others and to contribute to moving science forward.

To find the right clinical study we recommend you consult your doctors, other trusted medical professionals, and patient organizations. Additionally, you can use ClinicalTrials.gov to search for clinical studies by disease, terms, or location.
Read More

Join the All of Us Research Program!

The All of Us Research Program is inviting 1 million people from all backgrounds across the U.S. to help build one of the most diverse health databases in history. Researchers will use the data to learn how our biology, lifestyle, and environment affect health. This may one day help them find ways to treat and prevent diseases.

What if There Are No Available Clinical Studies?

ResearchMatch helps connect people interested in research studies  with researchers from top medical centers across the United States. Anyone from the U.S. can register with this free program funded by NIH. Researchers from participating institutions use the database to search for and invite patients or healthy volunteers who meet their study criteria to participate.

ClinicalTrials.gov, an affiliate of NIH, provides current information on clinical research studies in the United States and abroad. Talk to a trusted doctor before choosing to participate in any clinical study. We recommend checking this site often and searching for studies with related terms/synonyms to improve results.
Search ClinicalTrials.gov for this disease
Please contact GARD if you need help finding additional information or resources on rare diseases, including clinical studies. Note, GARD cannot enroll individuals in clinical studies.
1-888-205-2311
Available toll-free Monday through Friday from 12 pm to 6 pm Eastern Time
(Except: Federal Holidays)
Contact Form
Use the contact form to send your questions to a GARD Information Specialist.

Please allow 2 to 10 business days for us to respond.
ClinicalTrials.gov, an affiliate of NIH, provides current information on clinical research studies in the United States and abroad. Talk to a trusted doctor before choosing to participate in any clinical study. We recommend checking this site often and searching for studies with related terms/synonyms to improve results.
Search ClinicalTrials.gov for this disease
Please contact GARD if you need help finding additional information or resources on rare diseases, including clinical studies. Note, GARD cannot enroll individuals in clinical studies.
1-888-205-2311
Available toll-free Monday through Friday from 12 pm to 6 pm Eastern Time
(Except: Federal Holidays)
Contact Form
Use the contact form to send your questions to a GARD Information Specialist.

Please allow 2 to 10 business days for us to respond.
About the Disease

Learn about symptoms, cause, support, and research for a rare disease. 

Getting a Diagnosis

Take steps toward getting a diagnosis by working with your doctor, finding the right specialists, and coordinating medical care.

Living With the Disease

Find resources for patients and caregivers that address the challenges of living with a rare disease.

Getting a Diagnosis

Take steps toward getting a diagnosis by working with your doctor, finding the right specialists, and coordinating medical care.

Last Updated: November 2023