Prader-Willi syndrome

noun Pra·der-Wil·li syndrome \ ˈprä-dər-ˈvi-lē- \

Definition of Prader-Willi syndrome

: a genetic disorder characterized especially by short stature, mental retardation, hypotonia, functionally deficient gonads, and uncontrolled appetite leading to extreme obesity

Origin and Etymology of prader-willi syndrome

Andrea Prader born 1919 and Heinrich Willi †1971 Swiss pediatricians

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1964

See Words from the same year

Medical Dictionary

Prader-Willi syndrome

noun Pra·der-Wil·li syndrome \ ˈprä-dər-ˈvil-ē- \

medical Definition of Prader-Willi syndrome

: a genetic disorder characterized by short stature, mental retardation, hypotonia, abnormally small hands and feet, hypogonadism, and uncontrolled appetite leading to extreme obesity

Biographical Note for prader-willi syndrome

Prader, Andrea (1919–2001), and Willi, Heinrich (1900–1971), Swiss pediatricians. Prader was a professor of pediatrics in Zurich. Her articles and chapters in textbooks dealt with such topics as genetics, growth, endocrinology, and metabolism in children and adolescents. Prader and Willi first described the Prader-Willi syndrome in 1956. Cases of the disorder were not diagnosed in the United States until the 1960s.