Toddler eyebrow/forehead abnormality?

Trisomy 18 is Edwards Syndrome. You will probably struggle to have your concerns taken seriously, but it is possible that people have mosaic versions of genetic conditions, where only some of the genes are effected, this can sometimes result in a much milder presentation. Adults can have mosaic down syndrome or mosaic turners for eg and never know, as their traits are so mild. I think it is unlikely you will get a doctor to agree to the detailed genetic screening necessary unless he does go on to have developmental delays or other associated symptoms, I'm not familiar with those for Edwards. Just something to keep at the back of your mind I think?

@helpplease2020 I replied under a different name at the time and I can see genetic facial markers and I'm not doctor . I do however have a son with a genetic condition and I see the features everywhere I go.. I'm amazed the medical professionals miss stuff like this .. still!

One of mine had a similar pattern. The skin grows outwards on the face and marks etc shift away from the centre. Over the year it kind of spread out, faded and straightened, there’s no real sign of it now

Genetic conditions can be quite obvious visually. Ear position is a bit of a giveaway but there are other things.

Its quite normal for people to have funny little hair patterns, birthmarks etc. I know DC with an extra toe! I've known people with some slightly unusual facial hair formations but most adults have had cosmetic treatment to conceal things like this and so you wouldn't notice it.

Your DC is still quite young so i wouldn't worry over much yet about speech.

Did the OP come back ? I posted on this years ago and I could see signs of a genetic condition from her original pics .

I wonder how it turned out .

It doesn't look like the photos in your link, and if your child had Edward's/Trisomy 18, you'd definitely know......it likely would have been caught while your DC was still in the womb and if not, you'd be contending with serious heart and lung issues.

If you are worried about worried about the speech (though I think everything you've stated is within normal age for 19 months), go see GP again so they can reassure you.

I wasn't familiar with Edward's syndrome so I looked it up. It's a disorder that has a list of some pretty severe symptoms but what you're hanging your hat on here is something with his eyebrows and that he's not talking as well as you think you should be.

My child also had marks on his eyebrows from the time he was born. It looks almost identical in the photo. I couldn't find a similar example. I ended up here after looking for it. This is a similar example that I have never seen before. I am not American. How are your child’s eyebrows now? Has it faded a little? I feel like it's getting darker. Please reply. I am using a translator, so please understand any awkward sentences.

My almost 4 year old has a faint whorl directly between his amazingly expressive eyebrows. Your son is fine. My son inherited his daddy’s weird hair genes.

My daughter didn´t really speak until 24 months, she is 27 months and is coming on really fast now! It was like at 24 months something clicked. Now you can´t shut her up.

It’s defo not Edwards syndrome
You would definitely know by now.

I can’t see how Edwards wouldn’t have been picked up. I don’t think you need to worry about it. It’s really serious, with a mix of cardiac and other issues that get picked up in utero.

Have you tried your health visitor? They seem to get bad press on here but mine has been amazing - very knowledgable and has given some really good advice over the years. In my experience, they are good at spotting “normal” and “not normal” and could advise whether they think you should be pushing it with the GP. For what it’s worth, his speech sounds fine to me. My DD didn’t have more than a few words until 20/21 months and then she gradually got going. She’s 2.5 now and doesn’t shut up!

I say this gently but does he have epicanthal folds too? Is his overall development Inline with the norm? I have a child with a genetic issue so I am quite informed . Sorry but you did ask for advice .

I don't think the central whorl you are talking about is actually that similar to the trisomy pictures you linked to. In your second picture I think I can see what you are talking about; the eyebrows themselves are probably in the range of normal.

I suspect some abnormal hair growth patterns are common in infants and not that unusual in small children. However, it is reasonable to wonder about it especially if some aspects of his development could be a little behind.

If I were you I would suggest, at some point discuss his language development with the GP. Be open minded - ask him whether it is of concern / when to come back if he still isn't saying xxx by some particular age. (I recall learning 2 words together by age 2; my youngest only just made it or I'd have asked for review at that point).

One BIG caveat - if there are any other minor abnormalities or health problems that your child has / has had, then I would ask the GP whether a clinical genetics referral could be appropriate. I do not think that your child has a chromosomal problem, but there are plenty of genetic syndromes that might be spotted from a couple of physical anomalies combined with health problem X or Y. This would be in no way urgent, and the main utility would be predicting any other issues that should be looked for in the future.

At this stage a developmental review is going to be the most useful thing to set your mind at rest or decide to refer you and your child for support and/or early intervention. But no rush, some time in the next few months sounds fine. The fact that he is doing well physically is extremely reassuring.

Best wishes.

I can see what you mean and yes, it is unusual - I've not seen a DC with that before. Can you speak to your health visitor?

Are you or your OH hairy? He looks like he's developing a monobrow and maybe the whorl is just more obvious as he has dark hair?

Here I’ve drawn a circle round it. I’m not the OP!

It’s the bit above between the eyebrows in the second picture. It’s a whorl.
I’m not sure if it’s a usual thing, though.

How about the speech, does that fall in normal boundaries? You might want to just start with that as a concern.

Isn't Trisomy 18 is Edwards Syndrome, which I don't know much about but think it is quite serious and has a very short life expectancy? I think you'd surely know by now. Unless they can have mosaic Edwards Syndrome where the condition is milder? How is his development other than his speech?

His eyebrows look normal to me and one of my sons and 3 nephews have the whirl at the front, it's called a cow lick.

I can see what you mean in that latest photo, but to me it just looks like he has a bit of a monobrow going on. Is he a generally hairy child? And are you or DH hairy, or anyone else in either family?

That doesn't look so much like a whorl as the inner end of the eyebrow where they start growing in/down/together. It's not comparable to the whorls on the pdf which are all in the middle of the brow and much more unusual. If I didn't pluck the middle bits of my brows they'd not grow the same direction as the rest of the brow, they start curving the other way like your DS's. I wouldn't give it another thought but if the speech development is concerning you, then it's worth pursuing with HV/GP if only to put your mind at rest.