Kniest dysplasia

Last revised by Daniel J Bell on 28 Sep 2018

Kniest dysplasia is rare type of short limbed skeletal dysplasia.

It is thought to carry an autosomal dominant inheritance. Kniest dysplasia is one of a spectrum of skeletal disorders caused by mutations in the COL2A1 gene, which encodes for type II collagen (therefore classified as a type II collagenopathy).

Described features include

  • non-ossified epiphyses 
  • absent ossification of the pubic bones
  • delayed ossification of the femoral heads
  • flatted ovoid vertebral bodies +/- coronal clefts
  • dumb-bell shaped femurs
  • short limbs: micromelia
  • exaggerated metaphyseal flaring
  • enlargement of the epiphysis with cloud-like calcifications at the physis
  • metacarpal epiphyseal flattening 
  • enlargement of the metacarpal and proximal phalangeal ends

It is named after Wilhelm Kniest (1919-fl.1997) 12, a German pediatrician who first described the condition in 1952 4,8.

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