National Center for Advancing and Translational Sciences Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center, a program of the National Center for Advancing and Translational Sciences

Spondylospinal thoracic dysostosis

Spondylospinal thoracic dysostosis is an extremely rare skeletal disorder characterized by a short, curved spine and fusion of the spinous processes, short thorax with 'crab-like' configuration of the ribs, underdevelopment of the lungs (pulmonary hypoplasia), severe arthrogryposis and multiple pterygia (webbing of the skin across joints), and underdevelopment of the bones of the mouth. This condition is believed to be inherited in an autosomal recessive manner.[1][2] It does not appear to be compatible with life.[1]
Last updated: 4/15/2010

This table lists symptoms that people with this disease may have. For most diseases, symptoms will vary from person to person. People with the same disease may not have all the symptoms listed. This information comes from a database called the Human Phenotype Ontology (HPO) . The HPO collects information on symptoms that have been described in medical resources. The HPO is updated regularly. Use the HPO ID to access more in-depth information about a symptom.

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Medical Terms Other Names
Learn More:
HPO ID
Percent of people who have these symptoms is not available through HPO
Arthrogryposis multiplex congenita 0002804
Autosomal recessive inheritance 0000007
Hypoplasia of the maxilla
Decreased size of maxilla
Decreased size of upper jaw
Maxillary deficiency
Maxillary retrusion
Small maxilla
Small upper jaw
Small upper jaw bones
Upper jaw deficiency
Upper jaw retrusion
[ more ] 		0000327
Micrognathia
Little lower jaw
Small jaw
Small lower jaw
[ more ] 		0000347
Multiple pterygia 0001040
Pulmonary hypoplasia
Small lung
Underdeveloped lung
[ more ] 		0002089
Short thorax
Shorter than typical length between neck and abdomen
0010306
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Last updated: 7/1/2020

If you need medical advice, you can look for doctors or other healthcare professionals who have experience with this disease. You may find these specialists through advocacy organizations, clinical trials, or articles published in medical journals. You may also want to contact a university or tertiary medical center in your area, because these centers tend to see more complex cases and have the latest technology and treatments.

If you can’t find a specialist in your local area, try contacting national or international specialists. They may be able to refer you to someone they know through conferences or research efforts. Some specialists may be willing to consult with you or your local doctors over the phone or by email if you can't travel to them for care.

You can find more tips in our guide, How to Find a Disease Specialist. We also encourage you to explore the rest of this page to find resources that can help you find specialists.

Healthcare Resources

Research helps us better understand diseases and can lead to advances in diagnosis and treatment. This section provides resources to help you learn about medical research and ways to get involved.

Clinical Research Resources

  • The U.S. National Institutes of Health, through the National Library of Medicine, developed ClinicalTrials.gov to provide patients, family members, and members of the public with current information on clinical research studies. There is a study titled Evaluation and Treatment of Skeletal Diseases which may be of interest to you.

These resources provide more information about this condition or associated symptoms. The in-depth resources contain medical and scientific language that may be hard to understand. You may want to review these resources with a medical professional.

In-Depth Information

  • The Monarch Initiative brings together data about this condition from humans and other species to help physicians and biomedical researchers. Monarch’s tools are designed to make it easier to compare the signs and symptoms (phenotypes) of different diseases and discover common features. This initiative is a collaboration between several academic institutions across the world and is funded by the National Institutes of Health. Visit the website to explore the biology of this condition.
  • Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM) is a catalog of human genes and genetic disorders. Each entry has a summary of related medical articles. It is meant for health care professionals and researchers. OMIM is maintained by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. 
  • PubMed is a searchable database of medical literature and lists journal articles that discuss Spondylospinal thoracic dysostosis. Click on the link to view a sample search on this topic.

Questions sent to GARD may be posted here if the information could be helpful to others. We remove all identifying information when posting a question to protect your privacy. If you do not want your question posted, please let us know.

  1. Johnson VP, Keppen LD, Carpenter MS, Randall BB, Newby PE. Am J Med Genet. 1997; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9066887. Accessed 1/27/2010.
  2. Spondylospinal Thoracic Dysostosis. Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM). 2009; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/dispomim.cgi?id=601809. Accessed 1/27/2010.