These lesions usually present in neonates, although they may not come to clinical attention until adulthood (for cosmetic reasons). There is no gender predilection. They are present in approximately 3-6 per 1000 live births.

Minor degrees of curvature are common. Reports of incidence vary between 1% and 19.5%.

Clinodactyly is an autosomal dominant trait that has variable expressiveness and incomplete penetrance.

Clinodactyly can be passed through inheritance and presents as either an isolated anomaly or a component manifestation of a genetic syndrome. Many syndromes are associated with clinodactyly, including Down Syndrome, Turner syndrome, Aarskog syndrome, Carpenter syndrome, Seckel syndrome, Cornelia de Lange syndrome, orofaciodigital syndrome 1, 13q deletion syndrome, XXYY syndrome and Silver–Russell syndrome.

When identified prenatally, for example during obstetric ultrasonography, it may be an indication for intrauterine sampling for fetal chromosome analysis as it is statistically correlated with increased risk of chromosome aberration in the fetus.

Nager syndrome is thought to be caused by haploinsufficiency of the spliceosomal factor SF3B4.

The cause of this condition is not known. A genetic basis is suspected. More than one case have been reported in three families.

Duane-radial ray syndrome is caused by mutations in the "SALL4" gene which is a part of a group of genes called the SALL family. This gene plays an important role in embryonic development by providing instructions to make proteins that are involved in the formation of tissues and organs. SALL proteins act as transcription factors in that they attach themselves to certain regions in DNA in order to help control certain gene activities. Due to the mutations in the "SALL4" gene, proteins can not be made because one copy of the gene in each cell is stopped from performing its duty. These mutations are heterozygous and can be nonsense, short duplications, or deletions. At this time, there is no clear reason as to why a reduced amount of the SALL4 protein causes the symptoms of Duane-radial ray syndrome and similar conditions.

Duane-radial ray syndrome is inherited through autosomal dominance meaning that a mutation in one copy of the SALL 4 gene is all it takes to cause this syndrome. Those with this condition can have affected parents, but it can also manifest for the first time with no family history which is called de novo. Since Duane-radial ray syndrome is an autosomal dominant disorder, there is a 50% chance of passing the mutation on to offspring.

With so few described cases, establishing the basic pathophysiological mechanisms or genetic abnormalities has not been possible.

The varied signs and symptoms of Duane-radial ray syndrome often overlap with features of other disorders.

- For example, acro-renal-ocular syndrome is characterized by Duane anomaly and other eye abnormalities, radial ray malformations, and kidney defects. Both conditions can be caused by mutations in the same gene. Based on these similarities, researchers are investigating whether Duane-radial ray syndrome and acro-renal-ocular syndrome are separate disorders or part of a single syndrome with many possible signs and symptoms.

- The features of Duane-radial ray syndrome also overlap with those of a condition called Holt-Oram syndrome; however, these two disorders are caused by mutations in different genes.

SHORT syndrome is a medical condition in which affected individuals have multiple birth defects in different organ systems.

It was characterized in 1975.

Stratton parker syndrome is a rare disorder characterized by short stature, wormian bones (extra cranial bones), and dextrocardia (displaced heart). Other symptoms include dermatoglyphics, tooth deformities or missing teeth, abnormal kidney development, shortened limbs, mental retardation, undescended testes or cryptorchidism, and anal atresia. The condition was first described by Stratton and Parker in 1989, and there have been only four reported cases worldwide. Two cases of the syndrome were reported by Gilles-Eric Seralini in 2010 after having been contacted in January 2009.

Alternative names include "Growth Hormone Deficiency with Wormian Bones, Cardiac Anomaly, and Brachycamptodactyly" and "Short stature wormian bones dextrocardia"

Nager acrofacial dysostosis is a genetic congenital anomaly syndrome. Nager syndrome displays several or all of the following characteristics: underdevelopment of the cheek and jaw area, down-sloping of the opening of the eyes, lack or absence of the lower eyelashes, kidney or stomach reflux, hammer toes, shortened soft palate, lack of development of the internal and external ear, possible cleft palate, underdevelopment or absence of the thumb, hearing loss (see hearing loss with craniofacial syndromes) and shortened forearms, as well as poor movement in the elbow, and may be characterized by accessory tragi. Occasionally, affected individuals develop vertebral anomalies such as scoliosis. The inheritance pattern is said to be autosomal but there are arguments as to whether it is autosomal dominant or autosomal recessive. Most cases tend to be sporadic. Nager syndrome is also linked to five other similar syndromes: Miller syndrome, Treacher Collins, Pierre Robin, Genee-Wiedemann, and Franceschetti-Zwahlen-Klein.

Fitzsimmons–Guilbert syndrome is an extremely rare genetic disease characterized by a slowly progressive spastic paraplegia, skeletal anomalies of the hands and feet with brachydactyly type E, cone-shaped epiphyses, abnormal metaphyseal–phalangeal pattern profile, sternal anomaly (pectus carinatum or excavatum), dysarthria, and mild intellectual deficit.

An accessory auricle is considered a developmental anomaly resulting from the persistence of a structure which variably recapitulates the normal external ear.

Facial femoral syndrome is a rare congenital disorder. It is also known as femoral dysgenesis, bilateral femoral dysgenesis, bilateral-Robin anomaly and femoral hypoplasia-unusual facies syndrome. The main features of this disorder are underdeveloped thigh bones (femurs) and unusual facial features.

Wildervanck syndrome or cervico-oculo-acoustic syndrome comprises a triad of:

- Duane syndrome

- Klippel-Feil anomaly (fused cervical vertebrae)

- congenital hearing loss

The Aagenæs syndrome or Aagenaes syndrome is a syndrome characterised by congenital hypoplasia of lymph vessels, which causes lymphedema of the legs and recurrent cholestasis in infancy, and slow progress to hepatic cirrhosis and giant cell hepatitis with fibrosis of the portal tracts.

The genetic cause is unknown, but it is autosomal recessively inherited and the gene is located to chromosome 15q. A common feature of the condition is a generalised lymphatic anomaly, which may be indicative of the defect being lymphangiogenetic in origin. The condition is particularly frequent in southern Norway, where more than half the cases are reported from, but is found in patients in other parts of Europe and the United States. It is named after Øystein Aagenæs, a Norwegian paediatrician.

It is also called cholestasis-lymphedema syndrome (CLS).

Diagnosing the congenital clasped thumb is difficult in the first three to four months of life, as it is normal when the thumb is clutched into the palm in these first months.

Diagnoses that cause the same flexion or adduction abnormalities of the thumb are:

- Congenital clasped thumb

- Congenital Trigger thumb (flexion of the interphalangeal joint) - Trigger finger

- Spasticity: overstimulation of muscles

Syndrome associated flexion-adduction of the thumb:

- Freeman-Sheldon syndrome (a congenital, heritable affection of the face, the hands, the feet and some joints)

- Distal arthrogryposis

- MASA syndrome

- X-linked hydrocephalus

- Adducted thumb syndrome

- Waardenburg syndrome

- Whistling face syndrome (Freeman-Sheldon syndrome)

- Digitotalar dysmorphism

- Multiple pterygium syndrome

"Infant’s persistent thumb-clutched hand, flexion-adduction deformity of the thumb, pollex varus, thumb in the hand deformity."

Congenital clasped thumb describes an anomaly which is characterized by a fixed thumb into the palm at the metacarpophalangeal joint in one or both hands.

The incidence and genetic background are unknown. A study of Weckesser et al. showed that boys are twice as often affected with congenital clasped thumb compared to girls. The anomaly is in most cases bilateral (present in both hands).

A congenital clasped thumb can be an isolated anomaly, but can also be attributed to several syndromes.

Asymmetric crying facies (ACF), also called Cayler cardiofacial syndrome, partial unilateral facial paresis and hypoplasia of depressor angula oris muscle, is a minor congenital anomaly caused by agenesis or hypoplasia of the depressor anguli oris muscle, one of the muscles that control the movements of the lower lip. This unilateral facial weakness is first noticed when the infant cries or smiles, affecting only one corner of the mouth and occurs on the left side in nearly 80% of cases. It is associated with other birth defects in more than 50% of cases.

When the hypoplasia of the depressor anguli oris muscle is associated with congenital cardiac defects, the term 'Cayler cardiofacial syndrome' is used.

Cayler syndrome is part of 22q11.2 deletion syndrome.

It was characterized by Cayler in 1969.

Fleischer's syndrome is an extremely rare congenital anomaly characterized by displacement of the nipples, occasional polymastia, and hypoplasia of both kidneys.

SHORT is an acronym for short stature, hyperextensibility of joints and/or inguinal hernia, ocular depression, rieger anomaly and teething delay.

Other characteristics common in SHORT syndrome are a triangular face, small chin with a dimple, a loss of fat under the skin (lipodystrophy), abnormal position of the ears, hearing loss and delayed speech.

Shprintzen–Goldberg syndrome is a multiple anomaly syndrome that has craniosynostosis, multiple abdominal hernias, cognitive impairment, and other skeletal malformations as key features. Several reports have linked the syndrome to a mutation in the "FBN1" gene, but these cases do not resemble those initially described in the medical literature in 1982 by Shprintzen and Goldberg, and Greally et al. in 1998 failed to find a causal link to FBN1. At this time, the cause of Shprintzen–Goldberg syndrome remains uncertain. The syndrome is rare with fewer than 50 cases described in the medical literature to date.

Cebocephaly [Greek "kebos", monkey + "kephale", head] is a developmental anomaly of the head characterized by a monkey-like head, with a defective small, flattened nose with a single nostril or absent nose and closely set eyes. Cebocephaly is part of a group of defects called holoprosencephaly. The incidence of cebocephaly is 1 in 16,000 births.

Microspherophakia is a rare congenital autosomal recessive condition where the lens of the eye is smaller than normal and spherically shaped. This condition may be associated with a number of disorders including Peter's anomaly, Marfan syndrome, and Weill–Marchesani syndrome. The spherical shape is caused by an underdeveloped zonule of Zinn, which doesn't exert enough force on the lens to make it form the usual oval shape. It is a result of a homozygous mutation to the LTBP2 gene.

Ethmocephaly is a type of cephalic disorder caused by holoprosencephaly. Ethmocephaly is the least common facial anomaly. It consists of a proboscis separating narrow-set eyes with an absent nose and microphthalmia (abnormal smallness of one or both eyes). Cebocephaly, another facial anomaly, is characterized by a small, flattened nose with a single nostril situated below incomplete or underdeveloped closely set eyes.

The least severe in the spectrum of facial anomalies is the median cleft lip, also called premaxillary agenesis.

Although the causes of most cases of holoprosencephaly remain unknown, some may be due to dominant or chromosome causes. Such chromosomal anomalies as trisomy 13 and trisomy 18 have been found in association with holoprosencephaly, or other neural tube defects. Genetic counseling and genetic testing, such as amniocentesis, is usually offered during a pregnancy if holoprosencephaly is detected. The recurrence risk depends on the underlying cause. If no cause is identified and the fetal chromosomes are normal, the chance to have another pregnancy affected with holoprosencephaly is about 6%.

There is no treatment for holoprosencephaly and the prognosis for individuals with the disorder is poor. Most of those who survive show no significant developmental gains. For children who survive, treatment is symptomatic. It is possible that improved management of diabetic pregnancies may help prevent holoprosencephaly, however there is no means of primary prevention.