Marfan syndrome
Marfan syndrome is a rare but serious genetic disorder that affects approximately 60,000 Americans. It has excessive affects on the connective tissues within your body. These tissues are responsible for keeping your body held together. Usually the tissues become unhealthy as a result of natural aging and can cause your skin to sag as a result of it. Poor skin elasticity is the main issue with Marfan syndrome.
The origin of the condition has been specified after extensive studies. Sadly, diagnosing Marfan syndrome is not very easy to do. It can take quite a bit of cooperation with yourself and a specialist to determine if you do have this condition. It is still important to identify it if you do have it so the therapy can start immediately.
What Causes Marfan Syndrome
It may be difficult to understand what exactly causes Marfan syndrome. It is a genetic condition which is a result of a specific genetic mutation. The cause of Marfan syndrome can be targeted to a specific type of gene (variable expression) and this means that there are various ways for people within your family to attract the condition.
There are many possible situations where Marfan syndrome is developed. A parent with Marfan is at highest risk of giving birth to a child with the condition. Approximately 50% of parents that have this condition will pass it on to their children. The chance of Marfan occurring in individuals that are not related to anyone with Marfan is approximately one in ten thousand.
Symptoms of Marfan Syndrome
There are many symptoms associated with Marfan syndrome. They can affect various areas of the body and can be insignificant or very severe. Some of the serious symptoms associated with Marfan syndrome are noticed within your body’s skeletal structure, nervous system, and cardiovascular system.
Skeletal Structure Symptoms
People with Marfan syndrome will have a few noticeable symptoms that occur in their skeletal structure. For instance, people with Marfan are generally taller than people without the disorder. Also, most people with Marfan will be thin, have flat feet, and abnormally loose joints. One of the more severe symptoms would be a serious condition (scoliosis) which can also be tied in with Marfan syndrome.
Nervous System Symptoms
There is some connective tissue that forms a membrane within your nervous system. This is often referred to as the dura. Within this membrane are various vital fluids which have major responsibilities such as providing support and cushioning for your brain and spinal cord. People with Marfan syndrome will have poor spinal cord support and this could result in pain and possible nervous system complications.
Cardiovascular System Symptoms
There are a few possible cardiovascular issues that are existent in Marfan patients. These problems are mostly noticed in the heart and in your blood vessels. The leading cause of death for Marfan patients is cardiovascular system problems so these symptoms are very important to know about.
Marfan syndrome can cause valves in your heart to stretch out and operate poorly. The result of this could be a heart murmur or a leak. If the valve is leaking then there could be some serious health issues but the amount of leakage will vary. Some common cardiovascular system symptoms for people with Marfan syndrome would be having problems breathing, frequently feeling tired, and an unusual heartbeat.
Final Thoughts
There is no treatment method for Marfan syndrome but there are treatment options for the symptoms that are associated with the condition. If you want to prevent these symptoms from becoming more severe then you should treat them as soon as the condition is diagnosed. It is also important that the condition is diagnosed quickly so the symptoms can be treated before they become life threatening.
It is also important that you try to prevent the condition from passing through to your children. To do this you should speak with a specialist about ways to minimize the chance of the condition being passed on. Marfan syndrome is a serious condition that can shorten a person’s life and be painful to deal with. To conclude, it is absolutely essential that you diagnose and cure the condition in a timely manner. It is also important that you research the condition further and understand everything about it.
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