What Is Dwarfism?

Dwarfism is when a person is short in stature because of their genes or a medical reason. It’s defined by the advocacy groups Little People of the World Organization (LPOTW) and Little People of America (LPA) as an adult height of 4 feet 10 inches or under, as a result of a medical or genetic condition. Other groups extend the criteria for certain forms of dwarfism to 5 feet, but the average height of an adult with dwarfism is 4 feet.

There are two main categories of dwarfism -- disproportionate and proportionate.

Disproportionate dwarfism is characterized by an average-size torso and shorter arms and legs or a shortened trunk with longer limbs.

In proportionate dwarfism, the body parts are in proportion but shortened.