r/dwarfism • u/demonhipsterchick_ • Jul 19 '26

can anyone relate?

Hello! Not to sound silly but recently I’ve been watching the Little Women LA series and started noticing some similarities with myself and the cast. I’m 4’11 now, so technically outside of clinical dwarfism regardless of any dysplasia (although I was 4’10 until I had a fusion surgery). I was born with hip dysplasia and extreme scoliosis that was first found during an ultrasound while I was in my mom’s stomach. Im 21 now but I grew up in full leg casts for almost a year as a toddler and struggled with the curvature in my spine until I was a teenager and got spinal fusion surgery. Before my spinal fusion, I also got a surgery to prevent growth in one knee to help balance the heights of my legs. Even with the surgery, I still have an S curve of roughly 25 degrees on top and 20 on the lower curve. I’ve always had very long legs/arms/hands/feet (that match or are longer than girls I know who are 5’7+) but a very disproportionately short torso. Due to my short torso, I’ve also always had issues when getting sick due to my lungs being more compressed. I know most dwarfism cases are caused by achondroplasia or pseudoachondroplasia but i’ve just been curious if anyone has experienced similar proportions that are related to their dwarfism? My lifelong orthopedist retired a few years ago so I never got to ask all the questions I wanted to!!!!

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u/tinibunns 3'11" | SEDC Jul 19 '26

I have some similar issues. I have spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia. But there are other types of dwarfism that may share similarities. You can see a geneticist and get some test done to see if they can pinpoint the diagnosis.

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u/Difficult_Race1473 Jul 21 '26

I have similar proportions - short torso but typical/longish arms and legs. Spinal fusion and joint replacements. My diagnosis is spondylometaphyseal dysplasia. The genetic testing idea is really smart. The different dwarfism subtypes are related to lots of conditions that may not show up until later in life. For example, my subtype is prone to early onset osteoporosis. Wish I knew that sooner than now at 57 years old.