October 25th is Dwarfism Awareness Day. In countries all around the world, people with dwarfism still face social and physical barriers that can stand in the way of choices and opportunities.
On Dwarfism Awareness Day, people with dwarfism come together to promote awareness of dwarfism and challenge barriers to assert independence and their right to self-determination.
25th October was chosen as the day for Dwarfism Awareness Day because it was the birthday of Billy Barty who was an American actor who had dwarfism, and in 1957 he set up Little People of America. This is an organisation that supports people with dwarfism as well as raising awareness.
There are more than 200 different types of dwarfism. 80% of people with dwarfism have average height parents – their dwarfism can be the result of a spontaneous mutation, although some forms of dwarfism may be passed onto children. A child is born with dwarfism every 1 in 25,000 births. Despite this, very few doctors know much about dwarfism, so families often have to find a doctor that specialises in the type of dwarfism in their family.
A person with dwarfism will usually be less than 4ft 10in in height. However, dwarfism is not just about height - other medical issues can arise due to dwarfism, such as spinal stenosis, hydrocephalus, arthritis and more.
Achondroplasia is the most common type of dwarfism and the word itself means 'without cartilage formation'.
It is estimated that 7000 people in the UK have dwarfism. Dwarfism occurs once in every 15,000 to one in 40,000 births.
Source: www.twinkl.com
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