Turner syndrome
Overview
Turner syndrome is a rare genetic condition that only affects females and is usually diagnosed at birth. There is currently no cure but treatment and support is available to help manage any symptoms.
Symptoms
There are lots of possible symptoms of Turner syndrome. Everyone with the condition is affected differently, but almost everyone will: be born smaller than usual and grow up to be shorter than averagehave underdeveloped ovaries, which can affect puberty and cause infertility There are also a wide range of other physical features, characteristics and health problems that may affect people with Turner syndrome. Turner syndrome does not usually affect intelligence or language and reading skills, but it may cause some types of learning difficulties.
Causes
Turner syndrome is a genetic condition, caused by a missing or partially missing sex chromosome. It's not possible to prevent Turner syndrome. Very rarely it can be passed to a child by a parent, but most of the time it happens by chance. It is not linked to age or anything the parents did before or during pregnancy.
Treatment
There is currently no cure for Turner syndrome, but there are treatments and support to help children and adults have the best possible quality of life. A range of health professionals may be involved in your or your child's care. They'll help to create a care plan and advise you about which treatments may be needed, depending on your or your child's symptoms. Treatments you or your child might need may include: hormone therapy to support growth and puberty, and help keep the womb and bones healthytalking therapiesandcounsellingif you or your child feel depressed or have low self-esteemsupport for learning difficulties if you feel your child needs extra supporttreatment forinfertility, such as egg donation and IVF (in vitro fertilisation) if you have Turner syndrome and would like to have children