Hutchinson-Guildford Syndrome is a genetic disease that is characterized by premature and very rapid aging, which begins from the moment the baby is born. It should be noted that all over the world there are very few such patients. Pathology has another name - progeria.
Symptoms of the disease
Hutchinson-Guildford syndrome has obvious signs:
- short stature;
- the skull has an abnormally increased size;
- lack of hair, eyebrows and eyelashes;
- "bird's face";
- the bony and other body systems are deformed;
- lack of subcutaneous fat;
- a strong lag in physical development, while thinking and the psyche are normal.
It should be said that people have a certain average life expectancy: only 14 years, although a unique case is known when a person with this diagnosis has lived up to 45 years. Death most often occurs due to heart failure, as well as excessive deposition of fat in brain tissue.
Causes of the disease and treatment features
Hutchinson-Guildford syndrome is a pathology provoked by violations in the human chromosomes, that is, at the moment it cannot be completely cured. The meaning of the defect is that the number of cell divisions is significantly reduced, compared with the norm.
It should be noted that any child (regardless of the age and lifestyle of the parents) can get Hutchinson-Guildford syndrome (childhood form). It becomes noticeable at the age of two. There is also Werner disease that affects adults already. The growth of the body stops at the age of three years.
There is no special diagnosis of this pathology, since it has not been thoroughly studied. In addition, it is clearly visible by the listed symptoms. As for the treatment of the disease, there are no effective drugs that could stop it and return a person to a normal life. However, children who have Hutchinson-Guildford syndrome should be registered with a doctor and constantly examined. Certain procedures can help slow the progression of a pathology.
A treatment plan for the syndrome is prepared separately for each patient. It includes increasing the motor activity of the child, physiotherapeutic procedures. Thanks to the use of small doses of aspirin in a baby, the risk of a stroke is reduced. Sometimes the patient undergoes surgical interventions that are aimed at shunting blood vessels, removing milk teeth.
If you can not imagine what a child with Hutchinson-Guildford syndrome looks like, the photos posted in the article will show you this.
Features of the development of children suffering from the presented disease
If physically a child cannot grow, then his thinking and psyche does not suffer. The kid can learn to read, can receive knowledge. Naturally, the learning process will take place at home.
As for the subsequent forecast, it is disappointing. Such children do not live long. The fact is that in one year they spend 6-8 years. Naturally, scientists are working to reveal the mechanism of the appearance of the disease and how to stop it. However, the current level of development of medicine can only slightly improve the patient's quality of life, as well as slow down the aging process.