Patau syndrome

Patau syndrome is a very serious congenital disorder. A child with Patau syndrome has not two, but three copies of chromosome 13 in each cell. Another name for Patau syndrome is trisomy 13. It is much less common than Down syndrome. Of every 10,000 children born, 1 child has Patau syndrome.

Most children with Patau syndrome die during pregnancy or shortly after birth. The children often have growth retardation before birth. Live-born children with Patau syndrome have a low birth weight. They have very fragile health and usually die in the first year of life.

Children with Patau syndrome have a severe intellectual disability. There is usually a disturbance in the construction of the brain and of the heart. Sometimes kidney disorders and abnormalities of the gastrointestinal tract also occur. In addition, extra fingers or toes may be present. Facial abnormalities can also occur, such as a cleft lip, jaw and palate. The health problems are always serious. The nature and severity of these problems differ from child to child.