Background History and Information
Cri Du Chat (call of the cat) or chromosome 5p deletion syndrome was discovered by Jerome Lejeune, a French geneticist in 1964. Apart from Cri Du Chat, he also discovered the reasons behind Trisomy 21, or Down Syndrome. Lejeune was also the first to find that genetic disorders are linked with chromosome flaws.
Cri Du Chat is named so because of its distinct cry similar to the meow of a cat. The disorder is very rare and is caused by a missing section in Chromosome 5. 1 in 50,000 are diagnosed at birth every year. All ethnicities are equally vulnerable but it is most common in females by a 4:3 ratio.
Because Lejeune was mostly preoccupied with Trisomy 21, a much more common disorder, and considering the public is not as familiar with Cri Du Chat, little has been done in specialized treatment.
Cri Du Chat is named so because of its distinct cry similar to the meow of a cat. The disorder is very rare and is caused by a missing section in Chromosome 5. 1 in 50,000 are diagnosed at birth every year. All ethnicities are equally vulnerable but it is most common in females by a 4:3 ratio.
Because Lejeune was mostly preoccupied with Trisomy 21, a much more common disorder, and considering the public is not as familiar with Cri Du Chat, little has been done in specialized treatment.