Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

MASA syndrome is a rare hereditary, X-linked recessive disorder that has specific, progressively appearing neurological and clinical signs. MASA is the acronym for the four main characteristics that delineate the syndrome (mental retardation, aphasia, shuffling gait, and adducted thumbs). MASA syndrome is often used interchangeably with CRASH syndrome (also named for its characteristics), which are…

Marshall-Smith syndrome (MSS) is a nonhereditary disorder of increased skeletal growth, accelerated maturation and an extensive assortment of associated defeats. MSS has its onset during fetal development. Abnormal findings are quite obvious in the newborn.  

Marinesco-Sjogren syndrome (MSS) is an hereditary neuromuscular disorder. Associated defects are common in the eye and skeleton.  

Marijuana is the term used to describe the mixture of dried, shredded leaves and flowers of Cannabis sativa, or hemp plant. There are many slang terms for marijuana, including pot, grass, weed, reefer, boom, and gangster. Marijuana is generally smoked in the form of loosely rolled cigarettes (joints) or hollowed-out cigars filled with marijuana (blunts).…

Marden-Walker syndrome (MWS) is an extremely rare autosomal recessive connective tissue disorder. Medical and cognitive implications associated with this syndrome have onset at birth. Although this statistic is tentative, the prevalence of MWS has been estimated at less than 1 birth per 1,000,000. With regard to gender, MWS is approximately twice as frequent in males…

Alpha-mannosidosis is a rare metabolic disorder characterized by a deficiency of the lysosomal enzyme alpha- mannosidase. Due to this deficiency, oligosaccharides accumulate within cells of body tissues. Symptoms of the disorder vary widely, as does severity. There are two forms of alpha-mannosidosis. Type I typically develops in early childhood, with age of onset ranging from…

Maffucci syndrome (MS) is a nonhereditary disorder of skeletal and vascular tissues. Its salient features include benign tumors of cartilage and bone (enchondromas) and blood vessel malformations (hemangiomas). A condition marked by the presence of enchondromas (noncancerous cartilage tumors) along with hemangiomas (noncancerous blood vessel tumors) on the skin or within internal organs. This syndrome…