Klippel–Feil syndrome

Klippel-Feil syndrome
Other namesCongenital dystrophia brevicollis, cervical vertebral fusion syndrome
Woman with Klippel–Feil syndrome
Pronunciation
  • /ˌklɪ.pəl ˈfl/
SpecialtyPaediatrics, orthopaedics
SymptomsCervical spine fusion, scoliosis, spina bifida, heart defect, respiratory problems, other syndromic features
Usual onsetCongenital
CausesGenetic mutations
Risk factorsFamily history
PrognosisShorter life expectancy in some cases
Frequency1 in 40,000 to 42,000 births, females more affected than males

Klippel–Feil syndrome (KFS), also known as cervical vertebral fusion syndrome, is a rare congenital condition characterized by the abnormal fusion of any two of the seven bones in the neck (cervical vertebrae).[1]: 578  It can result in a limited ability to move the neck and shortness of the neck, resulting in the appearance of a low hairline. Most people only have one or two of those symptoms so it may not be noticeable without medical imaging.[2]

The syndrome is difficult to diagnose, as it occurs in a group of patients affected with many different abnormalities who can only be unified by the presence of fused or segmental cervical vertebrae.[3] KFS is not always genetic and not always known about on the date of birth.

The disease was initially reported in 1884 by Maurice Klippel and André Feil from France.[4] In 1919, André Feil suggested another classification of the syndrome, encompassing not only deformation of the cervical spine, but also deformation of the lumbar and thoracic spine.[5]

  1. ^ Andrews, James, William; Berger, Timothy; Elston, Dirk (2005). Andrews' Diseases of the Skin: Clinical Dermatology. (10th ed.). Saunders. ISBN 0-7216-2921-0.
  2. ^ "Klippel-Feil syndrome". Genetics Home Reference. U.S. National Library of Medicine. Retrieved 2018-08-18.
  3. ^ "Klippel-Feil Syndrome". HONselect. Archived from the original on 2018-06-12. Retrieved 2013-01-20.
  4. ^ Belykh, Evgenii; Malik, Kashif; Simoneau, Isabelle; Yagmurlu, Kaan; Lei, Ting; Cavalcanti, Daniel D.; Byvaltsev, Vadim A.; Theodore, Nicholas; Preul, Mark C. (July 2016). "Monsters and the case of L. Joseph: André Feil's thesis on the origin of the Klippel-Feil syndrome and a social transformation of medicine". Neurosurgical Focus. 41 (1): E3. doi:10.3171/2016.3.FOCUS15488. ISSN 1092-0684. PMID 27364256.
  5. ^ Feil A (1919). "These de medicine, Paris. L'absence et la diminution des vertèbres cervicales (étude clinique et pathogénique); le syndrome de réduction numérique cervicales". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)