Key Symptoms Linked To Werner Syndrome

Premature Loss Of Hair

Loss of hair typically becomes evident before a Werner syndrome patient reaches twenty-five years old. This hair loss includes the hair on the scalp, eyelashes, and eyebrows. Any body hair grown on an affected individual's trunk or chest may also begin to fall out. Furthermore, hair grown in the pubic areas and under the patient's armpits may also fall out. There is a close association between the slow growth and development that occurs in the Werner syndrome patient's reproductive organs and their premature loss of hair. Hormones are known to play a factor in this process.

The early loss of hair occurs because the cells that form the hair become damaged, and the affected individual's body cannot repair or replace them. This process naturally happens when healthy individuals reach an advanced or senior age. Hair loss and premature grey hair may accompany each other in Werner syndrome patients.

Severe Muscle Atrophy

Muscle atrophy is a process where the tissues that make up an individual's muscles begin to waste away. Healthy individuals may experience muscle atrophy as a result of an injury that makes them immobile for some time or when they reach an advanced age. Muscle atrophy is characterized by smaller limbs than usual and muscle weakness in the affected limb. Individuals who have Werner syndrome can experience degenerative changes that are progressive in all of their connective tissues, even the bones. The fatty layer that underlies an affected individual's skin can waste away, as well as the tissues that give the bones adequate density.

Damage to the cells that make up a patient's muscle tissues cannot be repaired or replaced properly, causing the muscle tissues to waste away. The most common muscles affected by severe muscle atrophy in Werner syndrome patients include the muscles in the legs, hands, and feet.