Weill-Marchesani Syndrome

Weill-Marchesani syndrome is an inherited connective tissue disorder that mainly affects the bones and eyes. People with this syndrome are usually short in height and often have short fingers and limited joint movement, especially of the hands. Weill-Marchesani syndrome also causes problems with the lens of the eye that lead to severe nearsightedness, and it can also cause glaucoma. An eye lens problem called microspherophakia is characteristic of Weill-Marchesani syndrome. Microspherophakia refers to a small, sphere-shaped lens, which is associated with nearsightedness (myopia) that worsens over time. The lens also may be positioned abnormally within the eye (ectopia lentis). Occasionally patients with this syndrome have heart defects. In some families this syndrome is inherited in an autosomal recessive pattern and caused by mutations in the ADAMTS10 or LTBP2 genes. It can also have autosomal dominant inheritance, and in these cases is caused by a FBN1 gene mutation.  Treatments for Weill-Marchesani syndrome are symptomatic and supportive. People with this condition usually need regular eye exams and sometimes need eye surgery.