Laterality Flashcards
What percentage of the population have minor anatomical anomalies?
7-41%
What percentage of the population have major anatomical anomalies?
2-3%
What is the chance of an infant having a major anomaly if they have no minor anomalies?
1%
What is the chance of an infant having a major anomaly if they have 3 or more minor anomalies?
20%
What is the name for standard anatomy?
Situs solitus
How does asymmetry of unpaired organs arise in situs solitus?
Embryonic primordia form in midline then undergo complex movements
May involve initial bilateral pairs
How does asymmetry of paired organs arise in situs solitus?
Right and left forms depend on morphology and NOT position
Give examples of asymmetric paired organs in situs solitus
Lungs
Cardiac appendages
Asymmetry of paired and unpaired organs in situs solitus is directional. What does this mean?
Consistent with reference to cranial/caudal and dorsal/ventral axis
What is situs?
Directional asymmetry
What is heterotaxia?
Laterality disorders
What is situs inversus?
A global situs defect
Mirror image of organs:
- Relative positional relationships maintained
- Therefore everything works and functions normally
What is the incidence of situs inversus according to Fulcher and Turner, (2002)?
1 in 6000-8000 live births
What is situs ambiguus?
Asymmetry of unpaired organs
At least one organ with reversed orientation along L/R axis
Everything else situated normally
What is the incidence of situs ambiguus?
1 in 10,000 live births
What is isomerism?
Asymmetry of a pair organ defect either:
- In isolation OR
- With situs ambiguus
What can left isomerism also be called?
Situs ambiguus with polysplenia
What are the features of left isomerism?
Heart has 2 long, narrow atrial appendages
Both lungs bi-lobed
Long hyparterial bronchi (ie. inferior to pulmonary arteries)
Polysplenia
What is right isomerism also called?
Situs ambiguus with asplenia
What are the features of right isomerism?
Heart has 2 pyramidal atrial appendages
Both lungs are tri-lobed
Short eparterial bronchi (ie. superior to pulmonary arteries)
Asplenia
What is the structure of the liver in both left and right isomerism?
Midline (usually)
If situs inversus totalis ‘works’ just as well as situs solitus, how much of the population would you expect it to be seen in?
50%
What might establish the cranial/caudal axis of solitus initially?
Gravity
Sperm entry site
What defects does cadmium induce in rats and mice? (Reference?)
Left limb defects in rats
Right limb defects in mice
(Layton and Layton, 1979)
What is Hensen’s node?
Transient, local thickening of blastoderm
What is step 1 in establishing the L/R axis?
Break the global embryological symmetry and create a centre of information