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The human being is an extremely complex being. Diseases, for example, are part of the life of all of us and we are obliged to live with them and to know them deeply in order to know how to treat and cure them.
Even more when it comes to women’s bodies, there are still certain conditions that we don’t even know exist. These are the diseases that many spend their entire lives without knowing what it is about, but there is still the possibility of encountering it throughout their lives.
This is the case of rare diseases such as Dunnigan’s syndrome , which is unknown to most people, but which still exists and exactly why we need to talk about it.
What is Dunnigan Syndrome?
Dunnigan’s syndrome, also called type 2 partial lipodystrophy, is an extremely rare genetic disease that affects only women. It is caused by a mutation in the Blade A gene (LMNA), which is responsible, among other things, for encoding proteins in our body.
Its main characteristic is the loss of fat from the hypodermis (or subcutaneous region of the skin) and the accumulation of fat in other areas of the body, such as the face, for example. Women who have Dunnigan’s syndrome usually have insulin resistance, which can lead to a number of other complications in their bodies.
The signs that a woman has Dunnigan’s syndrome usually appear along with the signs of puberty, and the sooner the diagnosis is made, the more likely the patient is that the treatment will be effective.
Symptoms of Dunnigan’s Syndrome
As with many genetic diseases, there are several external aspects that make a person with Dunnigan’s syndrome easily recognizable. In addition, there are also the symptoms that this condition brings. They are:
- Loss of fat in different regions of the body, mainly in the buttocks;
- Accumulation of fat in regions such as the chin, labia majora, and parts of the abdominal region;
- Insulin resistance;
- Muscular hypertrophy;
- Dysregulated menstrual cycle;
- Hyperandrogenism
How is the diagnosis made?
A doctor may suspect the existence of Dunnigan’s syndrome just by looking at the patient’s body, although certain tests may be ordered to confirm the diagnosis.
As we mentioned earlier, the disease begins to manifest itself along with a woman’s puberty and, precisely for this reason, it is important to obtain the diagnosis as soon as the first suspicions exist. This way, it is easier for the doctor to indicate treatments that can help the woman during her life.
Dunnigan Syndrome Treatments
Like any other genetic disease, there is no cure for Dunnigan’s Syndrome, although there are ways to directly combat the symptoms of the disease and to avoid possible complications.
It is these things that the treatment of Dunnigan’s syndrome focuses on. Most of these treatments will focus on remedies to prevent new diseases from arising, such as thiazolidinediones, for example. But there are also treatments that aim to reduce the damage caused by Dunnigan’s syndrome, as is the case with liposuction.
Liposuction
Liposuction is an alternative treatment for cases where there is excess fat accumulation. It is not an easy or cheap type of treatment, much less that it will offer a definitive solution to the problem, but it can mitigate the effects of excess fat located in certain parts of the body.
What will do you good not only physically for the woman, but also for your mental health, since the social difficulties imposed by this condition are also a problem.
Complications of Dunnigan’s Syndrome
The changes that the disease causes in the accumulation of fat in the body not only cause external symptoms, but also are related to several problems that the affected woman’s body can have. When there is no adequate treatment for the disease, several complications can arise, among them:
- Mellitus diabetes
- Pancreatitis
- Hypertension
- Cardiac arrhythmias
- Myocarditis
How to Live with Dunnigan Syndrome?
It is very common for people to see what is different with a certain air of suspicion, which ends up being potentialized in the pre-adolescence or adolescence phase. For the girl who has Dunnigan’s syndrome, it can be very difficult to live with others , which can end up generating several psychological problems, such as antisocial behavior and even depression many times.
Even though it is a rare disease, it is necessary to know how to deal with this type of situation, because you never know when it might happen to us. So there are some steps that must be taken to deal with this type of situation.
The first thing to do is to accept reality as it is. Unfortunately, this condition exists and you are in a world where other people have characteristics different from yours.
The support of family and friends at this time is essential to make the person feel good, feel part of the world and have reasons to smile. It is these people who can make a difference so that these social problems do not become even greater disorders and difficulties.
Of course, this is a process that takes time to work through, but it is necessary for the girl who has Dunnigan’s syndrome to lead a happy life. Rare diseases are difficult to deal with, especially when factors other than physical health are brought into play.
The social problems that diseases that cause changes in the body cause also end up causing psychological problems and, consequently, bringing diseases that can be dangerous, such as depression.
Learning how to live with Dunnigan’s syndrome requires not only a lot of effort on the part of the woman, but also on the part of her family and those close to her who need to be present and make that person’s world as pleasant as possible.
It is not an easy task for either party, but it is necessary that all of them work together to improve the lives of those who have this condition.
See also: Turner Syndrome – Causes, Symptoms and Treatment
My name is Dr. Alexis Hart I am 38 years old, I am the mother of 3 beautiful children! Different ages, different phases 16 years, 12 years and 7 years. In love with motherhood since always, I found it difficult to make my dreams come true, and also some more after I was already a mother.
Since I imagined myself as a mother, in my thoughts everything seemed to be much easier and simpler than it really was, I expected to get pregnant as soon as I wished, but it wasn’t that simple. The first pregnancy was smooth, but my daughter’s birth was very troubled. Joana was born in 2002 with a weight of 2930kg and 45cm, from a very peaceful cesarean delivery but she had already been born with congenital pneumonia due to a broken bag not treated with antibiotics even before delivery.
