Treacher Collins syndrome

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Treacher Collins syndrome (also known as Franceschetti-Zwahlen-Klein syndrome or mandibulofacial dysostosis) is a rare genetic disorder characterized by craniofacial deformities. Treacher Collins syndrome is found in 1 in 10,000 births. The typical physical features include downward slanting eyes, micrognathia (a small lower jaw), conductive hearing loss, underdeveloped zygoma, drooping part of the lateral lower eyelids, and malformed or absent ears.

This condition is a result of a defect of the first arch during development.

It is named after Edward Treacher Collins (1862–1932), the English surgeon and ophthalmologist who described its essential traits in 1900.[1]

One known cause of this syndrome is a mutation in the TCOF1 gene, at chromosome 5q32-q33.1. The protein coded by this gene is called treacle and has been hypothesised to assist in protein sorting during particular stages in embryonic development, particularly that of the structures of the head and face. The disorder is inherited in an autosomal-dominant pattern.

The symptoms of this disorder vary greatly, ranging from almost unnoticeable to severe. Most affected patients have underdeveloped facial bones, which result in a sunken appearance in the middle of the face, a prominent nose, and a very small jaw and chin (micrognathia). Some people with this condition are also born with a cleft palate. In severe cases, the micrognathia may displace the tongue of an affected neonate (new-born) sufficiently to cause obstruction of the oropharynx and potentially life-threatening respiratory problems, but it has been known that epiglottis can be surgically removed to help in airway obstruction. The neonate will asphyxiate unless a proper airway is established.

People with Treacher Collins syndrome often have eyes that slant downward, sparse eyelashes, and a notch in the lower eyelids called a coloboma. People with Treacher Collins Syndrome may also need a feeding tube because some cases are so severe that they cannot swallow. This condition is also characterized by absent, small, or unusually formed ears (pinnae), called microtia. Defects in the middle ear (which contains three small bones that transmit sound) cause hearing loss in about half of cases. People with Treacher Collins syndrome usually have normal intelligence.

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