progeria

American  

[proh-jeer-ee-uh] / proʊˈdʒɪər i ə /

noun

Pathology.

1. a rare congenital abnormality characterized by premature and rapid aging, the affected individual appearing in childhood as an aged person and having a shortened life span.

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progeria British  

/ prəʊˈdʒɪərɪə /

noun

1. med premature old age, a rare condition occurring in children and characterized by small stature, absent or greying hair, wrinkled skin, and other signs of old age

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Etymology

Origin of progeria

1900–05; < New Latin < Greek progḗr ( ōs ) prematurely old ( pro- pro- ² + gêr ( as ) old age + -ōs adj. suffix) + New Latin -ia -ia

Example Sentences

An article on the Xtend website celebrates the regulator granting the device a designation to evaluate its utility in treating progeria, a disease that causes children to age prematurely.

From Slate • Mar. 30, 2026

A research team led by Professor Chuanmao Zhang from Peking University and Kunming University of Science and Technology has long been focused on uncovering the biological mechanisms behind aging and progeria.

From Science Daily • Nov. 7, 2025

How can this database help to support and guide research for rare genetic conditions, like progeria?

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

“By now, I’m the oldest person with progeria in the world,” said Mr. Basso, referring to Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria syndrome, an exceedingly rare and fatal disease that afflicts only about one in 18 million people.

From New York Times • Apr. 1, 2022

That the spectacle of such a superbaby is not quite the most fantastic of all improbabilities is shown by the condition of progeria, first recorded by the Briton, Hastings Guilford.

From The Glands Regulating Personality by Berman, Louis, M.D.