Achondroplasia is the most common cause of disproportionate short stature. Affected individuals have rhizomelic shortening of the limbs, macrocephaly, and characteristic facial features with frontal bossing and midface retrusion. In infancy, hypotonia is typical, and acquisition of developmental motor milestones is often both aberrant in pattern and delayed. Intelligence and life span are usually near normal, although craniocervical junction compression increases the risk of death in infancy. Additional complications include obstructive sleep apnea, middle ear dysfunction, kyphosis, and spinal stenosis.

Pallister-Killian syndrome (PKS) is a dysmorphic condition involving most organ systems, but is also characterized by a tissue-limited mosaicism; most fibroblasts have 47 chromosomes with an extra small metacentric chromosome, whereas the karyotype of lymphocytes is normal. The extra metacentric chromosome is an isochromosome for part of the short arm of chromosome 12: i(12)(p10) (Peltomaki et al., 1987; Warburton et al., 1987).

PLOD1-related kyphoscoliotic Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (kEDS) is an autosomal recessive generalized connective tissue disorder characterized by hypotonia, early-onset kyphoscoliosis, and generalized joint hypermobility in association with skin fragility and ocular abnormality. Intelligence is normal. Life span may be normal, but affected individuals are at risk for rupture of medium-sized arteries. Adults with severe kyphoscoliosis are at risk for complications from restrictive lung disease, recurrent pneumonia, and cardiac failure.

ATP6V0A2-related cutis laxa is characterized by generalized cutis laxa, findings associated with generalized connective tissue disorder, developmental delays, and a variety of neurologic findings including abnormality on brain MRI. At birth, hypotonia, overfolded skin, and distinctive facial features are present and enlarged fontanelles are often observed. During childhood, the characteristic facial features and thick or coarse hair may become quite pronounced. The skin findings decrease with age, although easy bruising and Ehlers-Danlos-like scars have been described in some. In most (not all) affected individuals, cortical and cerebellar malformations are observed on brain MRI. Nearly all affected individuals have developmental delays, seizures, and neurologic regression.

Preterm premature rupture of the membranes (PPROM) is defined as rupture of membranes before 37 weeks of gestation, which occurs in approximately 3% of all pregnancies and accounts for about one-third of spontaneous preterm births (ACOG Practice Bulletin, 1998). Srinivas and Macones (2005) reviewed the pathophysiology of PPROM and noted that familial clustering and ethnic differences in the incidence of PPROM suggest possible genetic influences.

MED12-related disorders include the phenotypes of FG syndrome type 1 (FGS1), Lujan syndrome (LS), X-linked Ohdo syndrome (XLOS), Hardikar syndrome (HS), and nonspecific intellectual disability (NSID). FGS1 and LS share the clinical findings of cognitive impairment, hypotonia, and abnormalities of the corpus callosum. FGS1 is further characterized by absolute or relative macrocephaly, tall forehead, downslanted palpebral fissures, small and simple ears, constipation and/or anal anomalies, broad thumbs and halluces, and characteristic behavior. LS is further characterized by large head, tall thin body habitus, long thin face, prominent nasal bridge, high narrow palate, and short philtrum. Carrier females in families with FGS1 and LS are typically unaffected. XLOS is characterized by intellectual disability, blepharophimosis, and facial coarsening. HS has been described in females with cleft lip and/or cleft palate, biliary and liver anomalies, intestinal malrotation, pigmentary retinopathy, and coarctation of the aorta. Developmental and cognitive concerns have not been reported in females with HS. Pathogenic variants in MED12 have been reported in an increasing number of males and females with NSID, with affected individuals often having clinical features identified in other MED12-related disorders.

The classic features of TARP syndrome are talipes equinovarus, atrial septal defect, Robin sequence (micrognathia, cleft palate, and glossoptosis), and persistent left superior vena cava. Not all patients have all classic features. Some patients have the additional features of central nervous system dysfunction, renal abnormalities, variable cardiac anomalies including hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy, and variable distal limb defects including syndactyly. Most patients die in late prenatal or early postnatal stages (summary by Kaeppler et al., 2018).

Dermatosparaxis (meaning 'tearing of skin') is an autosomal recessive disorder of connective tissue resulting from deficiency of procollagen peptidase, an enzyme that aids in the processing of type I procollagen. The disorder and the responsible biochemical defect was first observed in cattle (Lapiere et al., 1971). Lapiere and Nusgens (1993) reviewed the discovery of dermatosparaxis in cattle, the elucidation of the disorder, its occurrence in other animals, and the delayed recognition of the disorder in the human.

ADNP-related disorder is characterized by hypotonia, severe speech and motor delay, mild-to-severe intellectual disability, and characteristic facial features (prominent forehead, high anterior hairline, wide and depressed nasal bridge, and short nose with full, upturned nasal tip) based on a cohort of 78 individuals. Features of autism spectrum disorder are common (stereotypic behavior, impaired social interaction). Other common findings include additional behavioral problems, sleep disturbance, brain abnormalities, seizures, feeding issues, gastrointestinal problems, visual dysfunction (hypermetropia, strabismus, cortical visual impairment), musculoskeletal anomalies, endocrine issues including short stature and hormonal deficiencies, cardiac and urinary tract anomalies, and hearing loss.

Polymicrogyria with or without vascular-type Ehlers-Danlos syndrome is an autosomal recessive disorder with a highly variable phenotype. Although all patients have polymicrogyria and other variable structural brain anomalies on imaging, only some show developmental delay and/or seizures. Similarly, only some patients have connective tissue defects that particularly affect the vascular system and can result in early death (summary by Vandervore et al., 2017).

Marbach-Rustad progeroid syndrome (MARUPS) is characterized by progeroid appearance with little subcutaneous fat and triangular facies, growth retardation with short stature, hypoplastic mandible crowded with unerupted supernumerary teeth, and cerebellar intention tremor. Psychomotor development is normal. Although features are reminiscent of Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome (HGPS; 176670), MARUPS is less severe, with a relatively good prognosis. Two patients have been reported (Marbach et al., 2019).

Immunodeficiency-87 and autoimmunity (IMD87) is an autosomal recessive immunologic disorder with wide phenotypic variation and severity. Affected individuals usually present in infancy or early childhood with increased susceptibility to infections, often Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), as well as with lymphadenopathy or autoimmune manifestations, predominantly hemolytic anemia. Laboratory studies may show low or normal lymphocyte numbers, often with skewed T-cell subset ratios. The disorder results primarily from defects in T-cell function, which causes both immunodeficiency and overall immune dysregulation (summary by Serwas et al., 2019 and Fournier et al., 2021).

A rare genetic multiple congenital anomalies/dysmorphic syndrome with characteristics of global developmental delay and intellectual disability, progressive spondyloepimetaphyseal dysplasia, short stature, short fourth metatarsals and dysmorphic craniofacial features (including microcephaly, hypertelorism, epicanthal folds, mild ptosis, strabismus, malar hypoplasia, short nose, depressed nasal bridge, full lips, small, low-set ears and short neck). Craniosynostosis, generalized hypotonia, as well as asymmetry of the cerebral hemispheres and mild thinning of the corpus callosum on brain imaging have also been described.

A restrictive dermopathy that has material basis in homozygous or compound heterozygous mutation in the ZMPSTE24 gene on chromosome 1p34.

Long-Olsen-Distelmaier syndrome (LNGODS) is a severe, early-onset disease with multiple system involvement and lethal dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) as a core clinical feature (summary by Reijnders et al., 2023).