Prune belly syndrome

Due to anterior abdominal wall muscle deficiency, the overlying skin covering the abdomen becomes wrinkled resembling a prune’s skin – prune belly syndrome.

Prune belly syndrome, also known by various designations such as Fröhlich syndrome, Obrinsky syndrome, Eagle-Barrett syndrome, triad syndrome is characterised by deficiency of the anterior abdominal wall muscles and urogenital abnormalities such as urinary tract obstruction and undescended testes.

Obstruction of the urinary tract results in urine backflow, urinary bladder overfilling, enlarged ureters, kidney distension with urine and the accumulation of urine in the abdominal cavity resulting in anterior abdominal wall muscle degeneration.

Prune belly syndrome is a rare syndrome with a poor outcome from birth; it is more common in males than females.

Reference:

Metwalley KO, Farghalley HS, Abd-Elsayed AA: Prune belly syndrome in an Egyptian infant with Down syndrome: A case report. J Med Case Reports, 2008 2:322. Go to reference

Prune belly syndrome

Image from Wikimedia Commons