What is Dandy-Walker malformation?
Dandy-Walker malformation is a congenital brain condition. It occurs when the two hemispheres of the cerebellum of the brain do not form properly. This leads to an increase in cerebrospinal fluid between the fourth ventricle and cerebellum of the brain, which in turn leads these areas to be enlarged.
This in turn can then cause hydrocephalus, or an excess of fluid on the brain, generally in the first year of life. Symptoms of this include an increased head size, vomiting and extreme sleepiness.
Treatment for Dandy-Walker malformation involves a cerebral shunt to drain the excess fluid.
Dandy-Walker can cause issues with movement, coordination, intellectual ability, and other neurological skills.
Understanding brain related symptoms and features
Symptoms may affect multiple parts of the body. Understanding which part of the body a symptom affects, can help us to better understand the potential underlying causes of a symptom, including a rare disease or genetic syndrome.
The brain is the central organ of the nervous system, a system which includes not only the brain but also the sensory organs of the body, the spinal cords and the nerves that connect them all. The nervous system is how the different parts of the body communicate with each other and controls their responses to both internal and external stimuli.
Generally, symptoms affecting the brain can not be seen with the naked eye. Although diagnosing a brain related symptom may involve different tests and assessments, both subjective and objective.
Symptoms relating to the brain may affect other parts of the body and development, including intellectual ability as well as the ability to move, speak and other crucial bodily functions.
What should I do next?
In some instances enlarged Dandy-Walker malformation may be one of the features of a rare disease or genetic syndrome. To find out if someone withDandy-Walker malformation, may be due to a genetic syndrome, it is important to have a consultation and evaluation with a clinical genetic specialist. Specialists may also suggest specific genetic testing or other types of tests to help reach a diagnosis. FDNA’s AI technology can help speed up the diagnostic process by analyzing facial features and other health information.
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