Radiological findings in the hand in Seckel syndrome (bird-headed dwarfism)

Abstract

Two patients with severe intrauterine growth retardation and bird-headed appearance are described. These two children had most of the clinical features of the so-called Seckel dwarfism. The radiological findings included: (1) ivory epiphyses affecting all phalanges in one patient and many phalanges in another; (2) cone-shaped epiphyses in the proximal phalanges; (3) marked disharmonic bone maturation between carpals and phalanges, between individual carpals, and from side to side; (4) alteration in the length of the hand bones, with considerable similarity of the metacarpophalangeal pattern between the two children; (5) relatively small carpals, which have an angular configuration; and (6) relatively normal or increased cortical thickness of the metacarpals.