[Transient alkaline hyperphosphatasemia in childhood. A report of 4 clinical cases and etiopathogenetic hypotheses].

The paper reports four cases of idiopathic transient alkaline hyperphosphatasemia during episodes of acute infection of presumable viral etiology. It is interesting to note that one patient present a exanthematous febrile reaction to an anti-measles vaccination, which seems to confirm that the measles virus may be one of the possible causal factors of the pathology. The assay of alkaline phosphatase isoenzymes showed an increase in the three hepatic, bone and intestinal fractions, thus excluding a sectorial pathology (bone or hepatic). This will avoid the need to subject the child to superfluous diagnostic tests in this transient and benign condition of increased enzyme levels.