How to Pronounce Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome
Definition, meaning, and phonetic spelling
Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome Pronunciation
BEK-with WEE-deh-man SIN-drohm
Stressed syllable in ALL CAPS · hyphens separate syllables
Syllable Breakdown
BEK
stress here
with WEE
deh
man SIN
drohm
5 syllables
What is Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome?
A congenital overgrowth disorder characterized by a large body size, large organs (organomegaly), a large tongue (macroglossia), abdominal wall defects, and low blood sugar in newborns. Children with this syndrome have an increased risk of developing certain childhood tumors, particularly Wilms tumor.
Questions About Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome
How do you pronounce Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome?
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Say it like this: BEK-with WEE-deh-man SIN-drohm. Break it into three parts: the first part sounds like "Beck" (rhymes with "check"), the second part rhymes with "with," and then you say the last name "Wiedemann" which sounds like "WEE-deh-man." The whole thing ends with "syndrome," which rhymes with "home."
Which syllable gets the stress when you say Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome?
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The stress falls on the first syllable: BEK-with. You say "BEK" a bit louder and longer than the rest of the word. A common mistake is putting the stress on "WEE" instead, but that's incorrect—always emphasize the "BEK" at the beginning.
What does 'syndrome' mean in Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome?
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"Syndrome" is a medical term that means a collection of signs and symptoms that happen together as a group. When doctors use the word "syndrome" after a condition name, they're saying these features tend to occur together as a package deal, rather than being separate unrelated problems.
Why does this condition have two doctors' names in it?
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Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome is named after two doctors—J. Bruce Beckwith and Hans-Rudolf Wiedemann—who each independently described the same condition around the same time in the 1960s. This is why the condition has both of their last names in it.
How do you break Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome into syllables?
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Here's how to divide it: Beck-with Wie-de-mann Syn-drome. That's 2 syllables for Beckwith, 3 for Wiedemann, and 2 for syndrome, making 7 syllables total when you say the whole thing.
What is the abbreviation for Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome?
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The abbreviation is BWS, which you can say as "B-W-S" by spelling out the letters. You might also hear doctors simply call it "Beckwith-Wiedemann" for short instead of saying the full name with "syndrome" at the end.
What does 'macroglossia' mean, and how does it relate to this syndrome?
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"Macroglossia" is a medical term made from two Greek parts: "macro-" meaning big, and "glossia" meaning tongue. One of the features associated with Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome is macroglossia, which is an unusually large tongue. It's pronounced "mac-roh-GLOS-ee-uh."
Can you use Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome in a sentence?
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Here's an example: "The hospital nurse explained that the baby had been diagnosed with Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome." The name is always capitalized because it comes from the names of two doctors.