Prune Belly Syndrome
Genetic Disorder
What Is Prune Belly Syndrome?
Prune Belly Disease is poor development in abdominal muscles, which causes the pruned appearance of the stomach. Also, urinary tract problems occur and so do un descended testicles. This condition mainly affects boys. The cause is unknown, but while in the womb the abdomen fills with fluid and when the fluid disappears after birth the stomach is left in a pruned appearance. This disorder is fatal and many of the babies diagnosed are stillborn or can die within weeks of the birth. Children with Prune Belly Syndrome also tend to have lung and kidney problems.
Images of Prune Belly Syndrome
Inheritance Pattern
Inheritance pattern: there is no clear pattern, but there have been studies that show that Prune Belly Syndrome is more common among consanguineous relationships. Meaning the parents are from the same ancestor.
Treatments
Treatments: early surgery such as trying to rearrange the abdominal wall may help fix the problem a little, but there is no cure. Also, antibiotics for the urinary tract infections are prescribed.
Symptoms
Symptoms: "Buddha" appearance of the stomach, problems with sitting, problems with walking, constipation, urinary tract infections. When the child is first born the doctors can usually tell if they're affected by this syndrome because of the wrinkled and puffed out stomach appearance.
Chromosome & My Research
97% of the children affected by PBS are male and 3% are female. Also, PBS can happen in twins. (12.2 in 100,000 births) 7 out of 100,000 children are born with PBS. If I was funded money to research or cute this disease I would develop a test that helps determine if the child has PBS before it is born. Also, I would research on how to rebuild the abdominal muscles and drain the fluid out of the unborn babies stomach so the appearance of the wrinkled stomach isn't as bad.
Bibliography
- "Building a better world for children.." Prune Belly Syndrome. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Mar. 2014. <http://prunebelly.org/>.
- "Prune Belly Syndrome." The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Mar. 2014. <http://www.chop.edu/healthinfo/prune-belly-syndrome.html>.
- "Prune belly syndrome: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia." U.S National Library of Medicine. U.S. National Library of Medicine, n.d. Web. 30 Mar. 2014. <http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001269.htm>.
- "Google Images." Google Images. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2014. <http://www.google.com/imghp>.