Roentgenographic Manifestations of the Prader-Willi Syndrome

The Prader-Willi syndrome consists of neonatal hypotonia, sexual infancy, obesity, and mental retardation. Five recent cases of this entity are presented to illustrate the roentgen findings, which include abnormalities of the calvarium and sella turcica, small hands and feet with thin cortices and over-tubulated bones, and unequal extremities. Other changes are coxa valga, scoliosis, advanced dental caries, and soft-tissue abnormalities. A review of the literature indicates that this syndrome is more common than generally recognized and that many of these patients had been categorized previously as having other similar conditions.