The Center for Human Genetics, in collaboration with Dr. Thomas Milhorat and colleagues of SUNY-Brooklyn and the American Syringomyelia Alliance Project, is investigating the hereditary basis of Chiari type I malformations with or without syringomyelia.
Chiari malformations occur in the region where the brain joins the spinal cord.
This misplacement can cause many different symptoms. Scientists and physicians further define Chiari malformations by the exact millimeter of brain stem that extends into the neck. Chiari type I malformations are a result of the smallest degree of herniation and are not associated with spina bifida. Chiari type II malformations are almost exclusively associated with a type of spina bifida known as a myelomeningocele, an opening of the spine and spinal cord on the lower back. III and IV malformations are very rare.