children s health issues
Neurofibromatosis
Types of Neurofibromatosis
There are 3 types of neurofibromatosis. NF1 (also known as von Recklinghausen disease) affects about 1 of 4,650 people. Neurofibromas develop along peripheral nerves—for example, under or within the skin and just outside the spinal cord. Sometimes tumors develop in the nerves that connect the brain to the eyes (optic nerves). Bone and soft tissues (such as muscle) may also be affected. NF2 affects about 1 of 25,000 people. It causes tumors of the auditory nerve (which connects the inner ear and the brain), called Vestibular Schwannoma , and sometimes tumors in the brain or in the tissues that cover the brain or spinal cord (meninges). Tumors in the meninges are called meningiomas. They are not cancerous. Schwannomatosis is rare. Schwannomas are growths composed mainly of Schwann cells. They develop around spinal, cranial, and peripheral nerves, but vestibular schwannomas do not develop. 