Progeria, also known as HGPS (Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome), is a very rare genetic condition. The word Progeria comes from the Greek “progeros” meaning 'prematurely old'. HGPS was named after Dr. Jonathan Hutchinson, who first described the disease in 1886, and Dr. Hastings Gilford who also discovered it in 1904 (Nordqvist, C. (2015, April 08).
The most frequent type of progeria syndrome is Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome. It’s a rare and terminal genetic disorder. Wiedemann-Rautenstrauch syndrome is another type of progeria syndrome. It appears in infants while they’re still in utero. The mature version of progeria syndrome is Werner syndrome. The symptoms of Werner syndrome typically occur in adolescents. Individuals with this condition may live longer well into their forties or fifties. …show more content…
Affected children generally look ordinary at birth and in early infancy, however then grow more slowly than other children and they do not increase weight as expected and fail to thrive. They develop a distinctive facial appearance including bulging eyes, a thin nose with a beaked tip, thin lips, a small chin, and protruding ears.
HGPS also causes hair loss, aged-looking skin like the one from an elderly person, joint deformities, and a absence of fat beneath the skin (subcutaneous fat). This disorder does not affect intellectual growth or the development of motor abilities such as sitting, standing up, and walking. Individuals with HGPS syndrome experience severe toughening of the arteries (arteriosclerosis) starting in childhood. This state seriously increases the chances of a heart attack or stroke at a early age. These severe complications can degrade over time and are life-threatening for affected