Melnick-Needles syndrome
Last updated 26 Aug 2021
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Melnick-Needles syndrome is a disorder involving abnormalities in skeletal development and other health problems. It is a member of a group of related conditions called otopalatodigital spectrum disorders, which also includes otopalatodigital syndrome type 1, otopalatodigital syndrome type 2, frontometaphyseal dysplasia, and terminal osseous dysplasia. In general, these disorders involve hearing loss caused by malformations in the tiny bones in the ears (ossicles), problems in the development of the roof of the mouth (palate), and skeletal abnormalities involving the fingers and/or toes (digits).
Description
Melnick-Needles syndrome is a disorder involving abnormalities in skeletal development and other health problems. It is a member of a group of related conditions called otopalatodigital spectrum disorders, which also includes otopalatodigital syndrome type 1, otopalatodigital syndrome type 2, frontometaphyseal dysplasia, and terminal osseous dysplasia. In general, these disorders involve hearing loss caused by malformations in the tiny bones in the ears (ossicles), problems in the development of the roof of the mouth (palate), and skeletal abnormalities involving the fingers and/or toes (digits).
Melnick-Needles syndrome is usually the most severe of the otopalatodigital spectrum disorders. People with this condition are usually of short stature, have an abnormal curvature of the spine (scoliosis), partial dislocation (subluxation) of certain joints, and unusually long fingers and toes. They may have bowed limbs; underdeveloped, irregular ribs that can cause problems with breathing; and other abnormal or absent bones.
Characteristic facial features may include bulging eyes with prominent brow ridges, excess hair growth on the forehead, round cheeks, a very small lower jaw and chin (micrognathia), and misaligned teeth. One side of the face may appear noticeably different from the other (facial asymmetry). Some individuals with this disorder have hearing loss.
In addition to skeletal abnormalities, individuals with Melnick-Needles syndrome may have obstruction of the ducts between the kidneys and bladder (ureters) or heart defects.
Males with Melnick-Needles syndrome generally have much more severe signs and symptoms than do females, and in almost all cases die before or soon after birth.
Inheritance patterns
The source lists the following possible inheritance patterns: X-linked dominant. More than one pattern can apply in different cases.
Related genes
Other names
Melnick-Needles osteodysplasty
MNS
Osteodysplasty of Melnick and Needles
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Further reading and references
- Melnick-Needles syndrome; MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine.
- Albano LMJ, Bertola DR, Barba MF, Valente M, Robertson SP, Kim CA. Phenotypic overlap in Melnick-Needles, serpentine fibula-polycystic kidney and Hajdu-Cheney syndromes: a clinical and molecular study in three patients. Clin Dysmorphol. 2007 Jan;16(1):27-33. doi: 10.1097/01.mcd.0000228418.74413.52.
- Kristiansen M, Knudsen GP, Soyland A, Westvik J, Orstavik KH. Phenotypic variation in Melnick-Needles syndrome is not reflected in X inactivation patterns from blood or buccal smear. Am J Med Genet. 2002 Mar 1;108(2):120-7. doi: 10.1002/ajmg.10245.
- Robertson S, Wade E. FLNA-Related Otopalatodigital Spectrum Disorders. 2005 Nov 30 [updated 2025 Jun 26]. In: Adam MP, Bick S, Mirzaa GM, Wallace SE, Amemiya A, editors. GeneReviews(R) [Internet]. Seattle (WA): University of Washington, Seattle; 1993-2026. Available from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK1393/
- Robertson SP, Twigg SR, Sutherland-Smith AJ, Biancalana V, Gorlin RJ, Horn D, Kenwrick SJ, Kim CA, Morava E, Newbury-Ecob R, Orstavik KH, Quarrell OW, Schwartz CE, Shears DJ, Suri M, Kendrick-Jones J, Wilkie AO; OPD-spectrum Disorders Clinical Collaborative Group. Localized mutations in the gene encoding the cytoskeletal protein filamin A cause diverse malformations in humans. Nat Genet. 2003 Apr;33(4):487-91. doi: 10.1038/ng1119. Epub 2003 Mar 3.
- Robertson SP. Otopalatodigital syndrome spectrum disorders: otopalatodigital syndrome types 1 and 2, frontometaphyseal dysplasia and Melnick-Needles syndrome. Eur J Hum Genet. 2007 Jan;15(1):3-9. doi: 10.1038/sj.ejhg.5201654. Epub 2006 Aug 23.
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