Children with Rare Nager Syndrome—Literature Review, Clinical and Physiotherapeutic Management

Abstract

Nager syndrome is a rare human developmental disorder characterized by craniofacial defects including the downward slanting of the palpebral fissures, cleft palate, limb deformities, mandibular hypoplasia, hypoplasia or absence of thumbs, microretrognathia, and ankylosis of the temporomandibular joint. The prevalence is very rare and the literature describes only about a hundred cases of Nager syndrome. There is evidence of autosomal dominant and autosomal recessive inheritance for Nager syndrome, suggesting genetic heterogeneity. The majority of the described causes of Nager syndrome include pathogenic variants in the SF3B4 gene, which encodes a component of the spliceosome; therefore, the syndrome belongs to the spliceosomopathy group of diseases. The diagnosis is made on the basis of physical and radiological examination and detection of mutations in the SF3B4 gene. Due to the diversity of defects associated with Nager syndrome, patients require multidisciplinary, complex, and long-lasting treatment. Usually, it starts from birth until the age of twenty years. The surgical procedures vary over a patient’s lifetime and are related to the needed function. First, breathing and feeding must be facilitated; then, oral and facial clefts should be addressed, followed by correcting eyelid deformities and cheekbone reconstruction. In later age, a surgery of the nose and external ear is performed. Speech and hearing disorders require specialized logopedic treatment. A defect of the thumb is treated by transplanting a tendon and muscle or transferring the position of the index finger. In addition to surgery, in order to maximize a patient’s benefit and to reduce functional insufficiency, complementary treatments such as rehabilitation and physiotherapy are recommended. In our study, we describe eight patients of different ages with various cases of Nager syndrome. The aim of our work was to present the actual genetic knowledge on this disease and its treatment procedures.