Williams Syndrome Symptoms, Diagnosis and Treatment

Before we start, it is important to define what Williams syndrome stands for as it is not really common and known syndrome. It is a problem detected and passed on the genetic level only. It leads to the range of development problems. There are many symptoms to take into account. The disorder is noticed since the childhood. Kids start complaining of an issue with heart and vessels. Other organs also suffer. The most commonly damaged part is the kidney or both.

Visually, it is easy to detect a child with this problem as the eyes, nose, and mouth may look irregular and weird as compared to other kids. In most cases, such children find it hard to study. These people should attend many different health care professionals to support their learning abilities and go on developing. A proper treatment and family support will make these people look absolutely healthy and happy.

The star-like pattern in eyes, short nose, teeth with wide spaces, tiny chin, full cheeks/lips, and a big mouth? Well, have a closer look at your child – those are all visual symptoms of Williams syndrome. Because of that, it is easy to diagnose the disorder and start the treatment. As for the external symptoms, such organs as the heart and kidneys may be irregular.

One more obvious system is the slow development of the person due to the lack of learning abilities. However, the original facial features stand out from the rest of the symptoms. The most noticeable are the eyes: they are uneven and rather big, with the folds over the edges. You can also notice a white starburst and unusual color of the organs of seeing. Longer faces are typical for teenagers who possess Williams syndrome.

There are several effective ways to diagnose the syndrome. First of all, the guesses of any parent are based on the unusual appearance and learning abilities. It is not that easy to tell that something’s wrong with the heart or kidneys. If you take the child to the corresponding health care provider, he will most probably conduct a fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) to approve or disapprove your guesses.

The aim is to analyze DNA consistency as the disorder is passed on the genetic level. If the particular gene is absent, the diagnosis is confirmed. The doctors also recommend doing a kidney ultrasound and examine blood pressure.

Be ready that a treatment of the disorders like that is a time-consuming procedure which requires a lot of patience from the side of both parent and child. You should not give up in any case! No special therapy or drugs exist to recover from Williams syndrome in full and immediately.

The only thing which the family can do is to minimize the effects; still, the facial features usually remains the same throughout the course of life. In case certain problems appear due to the damaged blood vessels, it is better to take care of them ASAP.

Educators and physicians highly advise advice two basic types of therapies to apply to the person suffering from Williams syndrome: physical and speech therapies. They will speed up the process of learning as well as cope with some physiological gaps. The treatment depends on the personality and personal signs of the syndrome. Don’t let your child eat something with the excessive amount of calcium and vitamin D: there is more than enough of these elements in the blood of such child.