Health Dictionary
Reliable, easy-to-read patient information on common medical conditions — written in plain language, free of jargon, and grounded in current evidence. Browse the most frequent diagnoses, understand what they mean for everyday life, and learn which steps and questions help you have a focused conversation with your doctor.
Hypoplasia
Introduction
Overview
Overview
Hypoplasia is an incomplete or arrested development of an organ or a part [1]. It is descriptive of many medical conditions such as:
- Underdeveloped breasts during puberty.
- Underdeveloped testes in Klinefelter’s syndrome.
- Underdeveloped thymus in DiGeorge syndrome.
- Underdeveloped labia majora in popliteal pterygium syndrome.
- Underdeveloped cerebellum caused by mutation in the Reelin gene.
- Underdeveloped tooth caused by oral pathology, such as Turner’s hypoplasia.
- Underdeveloped chambers of the heart in hypoplastic left heart syndrome and hypoplastic right heart syndrome
- Underdeveloped optic nerve in optic nerve hypoplasia
- Underdeveloped sacrum in sacral agenesis
- Underdeveloped facial muscle in asymmetric crying facies