Glossary

Eating disorders are usually triggered by people who are unhappy with their weight and shape, although in some cases reasons may be related to psychological conditions. The three types of eating disorders are…Binge Eating Disorder – where a person eats a considerable amount of food, Bulimia – when a person binges to deliberately makes themselves sick or uses laxatives to lose weight and Anorexia Nervosa – when a person starves themselves in order to lose weight.

A rare condition where the heart grows outside the growing fetus without the protection of bone, muscle or skin.

A condition which involves the deficiency or missing digits in the hand or foot, also known as spilt hand/ spilt foot malformation (SHFM)

The term comes from the Greek words ektroma (abortion) and daktylos (finger)

This skin condition can be a long-term condition, although in some cases – especially with the children – it can improve over time. Eczema causes the skin to turn red, cracked, dry and more unpleasantly, considerably itchy. Rashes can appear anywhere on the body although common places are on the cheeks, scalp, neck, knees, elbows and around the cheeks.

Edema usually affects the hands, ankles, legs, arms and legs as a result of fluid trapped inside the bodies tissue brought on by heart failure, cirrhosis or heart failure. Symptoms include painful tissue underneath the skin, stretched skin, skin that leaves a spot after being pressed and increased abdominal size.

Also known at trisomy 18 Edward’s Syndrome is a serious genetic condition which is present in babies carrying three copies of chromosome 18 instead of two.

Babies with Edward’s Syndrome will weigh lighter than average and 50% will die within a fortnight, one in five will live for at least three months, one in twelve will live more than a year with severe physical and mental disabilities. It is rare a child with the illness to reach adulthood.

Physical signs of Edward’s Syndrome include low set ears, extremely smooth feet, a small jaw and mouth, a cleft lip and palate, long fingers which overlap, exomphalos – intestines held in a sac outside the stomach and an abnormally small sized head.

Symptoms include bone abnormalities, learning disabilities, bone abnormalities, problems with breathing, feeding problems, hernias in the tummy and heart and kidney problems.

Also referred to as EDS, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome is a formation of inherited conditions. The group of conditions are known as heritable disorders of connective tissue.

Connective tissue supports the bones, internal organs, ligaments, skin, tendons and blood vessels. If the joints and the skin become weak or fragile in EDS this maybe because of a faulty protein, found in connective tissue, which ‘glues’ the body together – known a collagen.

There are three types of collagens, I, III and V. These can make the skin fragile, stretch the skin or/and increase joint movements (joint hypermobility)

People with Emotionally unstable personality disorder (EUPD) - also known as Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) - can experience bursts of anxiety, depression and episodes of anger which can last from a few hours to days.

A percentage of people with the condition also prone to self-harm, anxiety, eating disorders, mood swings and suicidal thoughts.

A lung condition which causes shortness of breath caused by weakening of the inner walls of the air sacs which creates larger air spaces instead of many small ones

A sense of loneliness and grief parents can feel after their children leave home for the first time.

A common condition where tissue that behaves like the lining of the womb is found in other parts of the body.

In some cases women with the condition can suffer back or tommy pain, pain opening your bowels when you are on your period, feeling sick, diarrhoea and pain after sex.

Endometriosis can also lead to heavy periods.

The clinical term for a family of skin lesions on the outer portion of the skin called the epidermis which are distributed in a linear and on most occasions, swirled formation.

The condition is not an uncommon congenital malformation occurring in 1-3 per 1,000 births.

A rare illness which causes warts across the body which usually starts in childhood which can affect both male and females.

Symptoms include difficulty using your hands, the skin condition seborrheic dermatitis, a fungal infection called Tinea versicolor which lives on the skin, verrucous plaques and nodules as well as Contoerted hands and feet.

There is currently no cure for the condition.

Epidermolysis Bullosa is a collective name for a range of genetic skin conditions which cause irritation and pain.

Certain types of the condition are life threatening and fatal.

Epidermolysis Bullosa can be inherited in either a dominant or recessive form. There’s a 50% chance of the condition being passed in dominant EB and 25% chance in recessive.

Affecting more than 500,000 people across the UK Epilepsy fires off bursts of neurons inside the brain which trigger off electrical impulses – all this erratic activity leads a to body having a repeated seizures. However, if a person only has one seizure in their lifetime they are not classed as being an epileptic.