Treacher Collins syndrome (TCS) is characterized by lower eyelid abnormalities, malar hypoplasia, downslanted palpebral fissures, and micro- or retrognathia due to symmetric hypoplasia of the zygomatic bones, maxilla, and mandible. External ear anomalies include absent, small, malformed, and/or posteriorly rotated ears and atresia or stenosis of the external auditory canals. About 40%-50% of individuals have conductive hearing loss attributed most commonly to malformation of the ossicles and hypoplasia of the middle ear cavities. Inner ear structures tend to be normal. Significant respiratory and feeding difficulties can be present in infancy. Other, less common abnormalities include cleft palate and unilateral or bilateral choanal stenosis or atresia. Typically, intellect is normal.

Nager syndrome is the prototype for a group of disorders collectively referred to as the acrofacial dysostoses (AFDs), which are characterized by malformation of the craniofacial skeleton and the limbs. The major facial features of Nager syndrome include downslanted palpebral fissures, midface retrusion, and micrognathia, the latter of which often requires the placement of a tracheostomy in early childhood. Limb defects typically involve the anterior (radial) elements of the upper limbs and manifest as small or absent thumbs, triphalangeal thumbs, radial hypoplasia or aplasia, and radioulnar synostosis. Phocomelia of the upper limbs and, occasionally, lower-limb defects have also been reported. The presence of anterior upper-limb defects and the typical lack of lower-limb involvement distinguishes Nager syndrome from Miller syndrome (263750), another rare AFD; however, distinguishing Nager syndrome from other AFDs, including Miller syndrome, can be challenging (summary by Bernier et al., 2012).