Because Marfan syndrome may cause asymptomatic spinal abnormalities, any spinal surgery contemplated on a person Marfan should only follow detailed imaging and careful surgical planning, regardless of the indication for surgery. The ocular complications of MFS can often be treated with surgery. Ectopia lentis can be treated, as artificial lenses can be surgically implanted. In addition, surgery can address glaucoma and cataracts.Treatment of a spontaneous pneumothorax is dependent on the volume of air in the pleural space and the natural progression of the individuals condition. A small pneumothorax might resolve without active treatment in one to two weeks. Recurrent pneumothoraces might require chest surgery. Moderately sized pneumothoraces might need chest drain management for several days in a hospital. Large pneumothoraces are likely to be medical emergencies requiring emergency decompression.As an alternative approach, custom-built supports for the aortic root are also being used. As of 2020 this procedure has been used in over 300 people with the first case occurring in 2004. Pregnancy
During pregnancy, even in the absence of preconception cardiovascular abnormality, women with Marfan syndrome are at significant risk of aortic dissection, which is often fatal even when rapidly treated. Women with Marfan syndrome, then, should receive a thorough assessment prior to conception, and echocardiography should be performed every six to 10 weeks during pregnancy, to assess the aortic root diameter. For most women, safe vaginal delivery is possible.Prenatal testing can be performed in females with Marfan syndrome to determine if the condition has been inherited in their child.
At 10 to 12 weeks of pregnancy, examining a piece of placental tissue through a test called chorionic villus sampling can be performed to make a diagnosis. Another prenatal test can be performed called amniocentesis at 16 to 18 weeks of pregnancy.Marfan syndrome is expressed dominantly. This means a child with one parent a bearer of the gene has a 50% probability of getting the syndrome. In 1996, the first preimplantation genetic testing (PGT) therapy for Marfan was conducted; in essence PGT means conducting a genetic test on early-stage IVF embryo cells and discarding those embryos affected by the Marfan mutation. Prognosis
Prior to modern cardiovascular surgical techniques and medications such as losartan, and metoprolol, the prognosis of those with Marfan syndrome was not good: a range of untreatable cardiovascular issues was common. Lifespan was reduced by at least a third, and many died in their teens and twenties due to cardiovascular problems. Today, cardiovascular symptoms of Marfan syndrome are still the most significant issues in diagnosis and management of the disease, but adequate prophylactic monitoring and prophylactic therapy offers something approaching a normal lifespan, and more manifestations of the disease are being discovered as more patients live longer. Women with Marfan syndrome live longer than men. Epidemiology
Marfan syndrome affects males and females equally, and the mutation shows no ethnic or geographical bias. Estimates indicate about 1 in 5,000 to 10,000 individuals have Marfan syndrome.