Essay On Rett Syndrome

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Rett syndrome is a neurological disorder that mainly affects females. According to “The Molecular Pathology of Rett syndrome: Synopsis and Update”, it states that the disorder starts to be recognizable when the child is between six to eighteen months of age. The affected child will loose their ability to speak and hand movements. Through research, MECP2 is in the X chromosome gene (2006). An estimate of females that suffer from Rett syndrome is 1 in 1,000 and in the United States, it is approximately 16,000 young and adult females that are affected (Rett Syndrome, 2008). In my paper, I will give a brief history of how Rett syndrome was first noticed, discuss the dysfunction in the brain, the development and behavior, and possible treatments. In the 1960’s, an Austrian pediatrician, Dr. Andres Rett, recognized a few of his female patients with similar indications of having some type of neurologic disorder but did not fit the cerebral palsy classification (Zoghbi, 2002). Without the knowledge of earlier research, a Swedish physician, Bengt Hagberg, began to openly speak about his observations similarly to Dr. Andres Rett records (Zoghbi, 2002). Bengt Hagberg observed numerous of female patients with this unknown syndrome and was curious in their wringing hand movement that no textbook had information on. In June 1981 Dr. Neil Gordon hosted a board meeting of the European Federations of Child Neurology Societies in Manchester and Bengt Hagberg had the opportunity to share his studies there. The discussion group had other pediatric neurologists that had seen the same behaviors but they all were unable to categorize it into its own identity. As years past, this syndrome has increased and neurologist began to evaluate this syndrome t... ... middle of paper ... ...ental Retardation & Developmental Disabilities Research Reviews, 8(2), 61-65 Kerr, A. (2002). Annotation: Rett syndrome: recent progress and implications for research and clinical practice. Journal Of Child Psychology & Psychiatry & Allied Disciplines, 43(3), 277. Rett Syndrome. (2008, September 25). Rett Syndrome Research Trust. Retrieved July 24, 2014, from http://www.rsrt.org/rett-and-mecp2-disorders/rett- syndrome Webb, T. (2001). Rett syndrome and the MECP2 gene. Journal of Medical Genetics, 38(4), 217. Young, D. J., Bebbington, A., Anderson, A., Ravine, D., Ellaway, C., Kulkarni, A., & ... Leonard, H. (2008). The diagnosis of autism in a female: could it be Rett syndrome?. European Journal Of Pediatrics, 167(6), 661-669 Zoghbi, H. Y. (2002). Introduction: Rett syndrome. Mental Retardation & Developmental Disabilities Research Reviews, 8(2), 59-60.

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