[Seckel's syndrome (or bird's head dwarfism). Apropos of a case]

A 13-year-old boy presented with Seckel's syndrome, still called bird's head nanism, characterized by: --nanism, mental retardation, microcephaly, and protrusio of the middle third of the face. The typical facial appearance enabled a detailed study to be conducted of both clinical and radiological features, including, particularly, an architectural and structural analysis of profile teleradiographic images, providing objective data on the craniofacial deformities. Skeletal and systemic anomalies are also described, together with elements documented in the literature but absent in the present case. The etiology of this syndrome remains unknown.