What is the difference between atrophy and hypoplasia

This lack of cells can cause problems with the functioning of the tissue or organ. Hypoplasia can occur in many different areas of the body, and a range of conditions involve hypoplasia.

Hypoplasia typically causes problems with how a tissue or organ functions. The consequences of hypoplasia depend on what area of the body it affects. These symptoms vary greatly from those of cerebellar hypoplasia, which affects the cerebellum.

Cerebellar hypoplasia is a feature of several congenital malformation syndromes, including Walker-Warburg syndrome, which is a form of muscular dystrophy. It is also associated with several inherited metabolic disorders, such as Williams syndrome, and some of the neurodegenerative disorders that begin in early childhood, such as ataxia telangiectasia. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke , because the cerebellum plays an important role in motor coordination, the symptoms of disorders involving cerebellar hypoplasia can include:.

Hypoplasia describes a lack of cell growth, but aplasia is a complete lack of an organ or tissue. People with hypoplasia will have a tissue or organ with too few cells.

Aplasia means that there is no tissue or organ at all. For example, ureteral aplasia is the lack of a ureter, which is the tube that carries urine from the kidneys to the bladder. Ureteral hypoplasia, on the other hand, occurs when the tube is present but underdeveloped.

Dysplasia refers to abnormal cell development within tissues or organs. For example, it may cause cells to grow at an abnormally high rate. This can lead to abnormal growth or tumors. Atrophy, such as muscle atrophy , occurs when an organ or tissue becomes smaller after reaching a normal size. Conditions with atrophy typically involve cell loss or damage. For example, spinal muscular atrophy occurs when muscles shrink due to a lack of stimulation from nerve cells.

Muscles are typically fully developed at one point, but atrophy then causes a loss of muscle cells and functioning. Many conditions involving hypoplasia are due to a congenital problem. Congenital problems are those that occur at or before birth. Genetics play a major role in many congenital problems. For example, an infant can inherit a faulty gene from a parent. Hypoplasia plural: hypoplasias is a pathological term referring to the state of a tissue or organ which at the end of its developmental process has not fully formed cf.

Interestingly therefore hypoplasia and hyperplasia are not opposites, despite the apparent antonymy of their prefixes. Hyperplasia is usually reserved for post-developmental enlargement of anatomical structures, e. Please Note: You can also scroll through stacks with your mouse wheel or the keyboard arrow keys. Updating… Please wait. Unable to process the form. Check for errors and try again. Thank you for updating your details. Log In. Sign Up. This developmental disturbance occurs in the embryo or foetus in utero.

In the place of the organ, rudimentary tissue of fat and connective tissue are present. The condition is incompatible with life when it involves vital organs like heart, brain etc. Any injury occurring in late stages of development of fetus or neonates.

Genetic mutation affects proper differentiation and migration of cells in embryo, virus causes hypoplastic changes; drug induced hypoplasia occurs through degeneration and necrotic changes.

Pathological changes: Organ will be smaller than adult size. The cells show alterations in lysosomes and inspissated protein in cytoplasm. The phagolysosomes increase in size with lipofuscin pigment. Involution of the organs can be observed as the age is advanced. Involution is the decrease in the size of the organ due to decrease in the number of cells, caused by apoptosis. Involution of thymus on attaining puberty, uterine involution after parturition decrease in smooth muscle size and number.

Senile atrophy : Atrophy of the organs occurs with ageing and reproductive organs like testis and ovaries are the first to show such changes. It is associated with loss of cells. In atrophy, the cells survive and are smaller in size with decreased function.