Brittle Bone Disease

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HealthWiki > Disabled Village Children > Chapter 13: Children Who Stay Small or Have Weak Bones > Brittle Bone Disease

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In this chapter:

 

In this chapter:

The child is born with bent or twisted limbs, or with broken bones. (Or he may seem typical at birth, and the bones begin to break later.) He may start to walk near the typical age, but increasing disability due to breaks may soon make walking impossible. Because of the many broken and bent bones, these children stay very short. Parents sometimes do not realize when their child breaks a bone.

Brittle bone disease is not common. Sometimes it is inherited, and someone else in the family will have the same condition.

There is no medical treatment. However, sometimes surgery can be done to straighten and strengthen the leg bones by putting a metal rod down the middle of them. This may help the child walk for longer, but he may eventually need a wheelchair to move about. Back problems increase with age; a body brace may help.

SIGNS OF BRITTLE BONE DISEASE

broad forehead hearing loss may develop white part of eye looks blue discolored teeth that wear quickly barrel chest and rounded back bones bent and shortened from many fractures (broken bones)

Increasing hearing loss may become a problem for children with brittle bone disease. Help them to develop their minds and learn skills that do not require physical strength. The child must learn how to protect his body from breaks. It helps to sleep on a firm bed.

This page was updated:18 Sep 2024