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Summary
A dwarf is a person of short stature - under 4' 10" as an adult. More than 200 different conditions can cause dwarfism. A single type, called achondroplasia, causes about 70 percent of all dwarfism. Achondroplasia is a genetic condition that affects about 1 in 15,000 to 1 in 40,000 people. It makes your arms and legs short in comparison to your head and trunk. Other genetic conditions, kidney disease and problems with metabolism or hormones can also cause short stature.
Dwarfism itself is not a disease. However, there is a greater risk of some health problems. With proper medical care, most people with dwarfism have active lives and live as long as other people.
Diagnosis and Tests
- Genetic Testing (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
Specifics
- Ellis-Van Creveld Dysplasia (Nemours Foundation)
- Hypochondroplasia (Nemours Foundation)
- Primordial Dwarfism (Nemours Foundation)
Genetics
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Genetics Home Reference: 3-M syndrome
(National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: achondrogenesis (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: achondroplasia (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: asphyxiating thoracic dystrophy (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: atelosteogenesis type 2 (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: campomelic dysplasia (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: cartilage-hair hypoplasia (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: diastrophic dysplasia (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: Ellis-van Creveld syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: fibrochondrogenesis (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: hypochondrogenesis (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: hypochondroplasia (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: isolated growth hormone deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: Kniest dysplasia (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: Laron syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: Meier-Gorlin syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: metatropic dysplasia (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: microcephalic osteodysplastic primordial dwarfism type II (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: osteoglophonic dysplasia (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: platyspondylic lethal skeletal dysplasia, Torrance type (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: pseudoachondroplasia (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: Robinow syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: SADDAN (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: Schimke immuno-osseous dysplasia (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: spondyloepimetaphyseal dysplasia, Strudwick type (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenita (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: spondylothoracic dysostosis (National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: thanatophoric dysplasia (National Library of Medicine)
Statistics and Research
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Insights Into Severe Form of Dwarfism Could Lead to New Treatment Strategies (National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases)
Clinical Trials
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Achondroplasia (National Institutes of Health)
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Dwarfism (National Institutes of Health)
Journal ArticlesReferences and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
Find an Expert
Children
- Dwarfism (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation)
Teenagers
- Dwarfism (Nemours Foundation)
Patient Handouts
- Achondroplasia Also in Spanish
