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1994-01-17
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$Unique_ID{BRK03612}
$Pretitle{}
$Title{Cockayne Syndrome}
$Subject{Cockayne Syndrome Dwarfism with Renal Atrophy and Deafness Progeroid
Nanism Deafness-Dwarfism-Retinal Atrophy Neill-Dingwall Syndrome}
$Volume{}
$Log{}
Copyright (C) 1986, 1990 National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc.
176:
Cockayne Syndrome
** IMPORTANT **
It is possible the main title of the article (Cockayne Syndrome) is not
the name you expected. Please check the SYNONYMS listing to find the
alternate and disorder subdivisions covered by this article.
Synonyms
Dwarfism with Renal Atrophy and Deafness
Progeroid Nanism
Deafness-Dwarfism-Retinal Atrophy
Neill-Dingwall Syndrome
General Discussion
** REMINDER **
The information contained in the Rare Disease Database is provided for
educational purposes only. It should not be used for diagnostic or treatment
purposes. If you wish to obtain more information about this disorder, please
contact your personal physician and/or the agencies listed in the "Resources"
section of this report.
Cockayne Syndrome is a progressive disorder which manifests itself during
the second year of life. It is characterized by a hypersensitivity to
sunlight and retardation of growth.
Symptoms
Following a normal infancy, the onset of Cockayne Syndrome is during the
second year of life. Cutaneous photosensitivity may result in excess
pigmentation and scarring. The patient may experience a decrease in vision
and unsteady gait. There may also be progressive deafness and mental
deficiency.
Signs of the disorder include dwarfism accompanied by relatively long
extremities and large hands and feet. Musculoskeletal abnormalities may
include large joints which are habitually flexed, kyphosis (humpback), and a
skull which is thickened and relatively smaller in size. The patients
extremities may feel cold and have a bluish coloration. There may be a lack
of subcutaneous fat in the face with a protruding jaw (prognathism), sunken
eyes and a thin nose. Dental caries, a coarse-sounding voice, partial
deafness, tremor, unsteady gait, and mental deficiency may also occur.
Further manifestations of Cockayne Syndrome may include poor response of
the pupil to dilatation, optic atrophy with retinal pigmentation, and
cataracts. There may occasionally also be an enlarged liver and spleen
(hepatosplenomegaly), and older patients may be sexually underdeveloped.
Causes
Cockayne Syndrome may be hereditary in certain families (heredofamilial) as
an autosomal recessive trait. (Human traits including the classic genetic
diseases, are the product of the interaction of two genes for that condition,
one received from the father and one from the mother. In recessive
disorders, the condition does not appear unless a person inherits the same
defective gene from each parent. If one receives one normal gene and one
gene for the disease, the person will be a carrier for the disease, but
usually will show no symptoms. The risk of transmitting the disease to the
children of a couple, both of whom are carriers for a recessive disorder, is
twenty-five percent. Fifty percent of their children will be carriers, but
healthy as described above. Twenty-five percent of their children will
receive both normal genes, one from each parent and will be genetically
normal.)
The disorder may be caused by an extra chromosome or an inborn error of
metabolism.
Related Disorders
Some aspects of Cockayne Syndrome are similar to Hutchinson-Gilford Syndrome.
The Neill-Dingwall Syndrome appears to have the same characteristics and, in
fact, the two disorders may be identical.
Therapies: Standard
Treatment of Cockayne Syndrome is symptomatic and supportive.
Therapies: Investigational
This disease entry is based upon medical information available through
January 1990. Since NORD's resources are limited, it is not possible to keep
every entry in the Rare Disease Database completely current and accurate.
Please check with the agencies listed in the Resources section for the most
current information about this disorder.
Resources
For more information on Cockayne Syndrome, please contact:
National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD)
P.O. Box 8923
New Fairfield, CT 06812-1783
(203) 746-6518
Cockayne Syndrome Share and Care
124 South Street
North Valley Stream, NY 11580
Cockayne Syndrome Registry
c/o Ted Brown
NYS Institute for Basic Research
1050 Forest Hill Rd.
Staten Island, NY 10314
NIH/National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
9000 Rockville Pike
Bethesda, MD 20892
(301) 496-5133
The Magic Foundation
1327 N. Harlem Ave.
Oak Park, IL 60302
(708) 383-0808
Human Growth Foundation (HGF)
7777 Leesburg Pike
P.O. Box 3090
Falls Church, VA 22043
(703) 883-1773
(800) 451-6434
Research Trust for Metabolic Diseases in Children
Golden Gates Lodge, Weston Rd.
Crewe CW1 1XN, England
Telephone: (0270) 250244
International Tremor Foundation
360 W. Superior St.
Chicago, IL 60610
(312) 664-2344
For information on genetics and genetic counseling referrals, please
contact:
March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation
1275 Mamaroneck Avenue
White Plains, NY 10605
(914) 428-7100
Alliance of Genetic Support Groups
35 Wisconsin Circle, Suite 440
Chevy Chase, MD 20815
(800) 336-GENE
(301) 652-5553
References
SMITH'S RECOGNIZABLE PATTERNS OF HUMAN MALFORMATION, 4th ed., Kenneth L.
Jones, M.D., W.B. Saunders, Co. 1988. Pp. 122-3.
MENDELIAN INHERITANCE IN MAN, 8th ed.: Victor A. McKusick; Johns Hopkins
University Press, 1986. Pp. 871-2.