Welcome to the Marcus Gunn Foundation*
Established in 1998, our group began gathering information about the Marcus Gunn Syndrome (Marcus Gunn Phenomenon) commonly referred to as a jaw-wink. Between 1998 and 2002, we documented 212 cases through questionnaires. We now have re-grouped to help determine if there is a solution to the manifestation of the disorder. We have kept the Yahoo group active since that time. It is still active and you are welcome to join.
Allison Gahrmann founded this group and currently is reviving the research. She has a Marcus Gunn Syndrome with ptosis. When we began our studies, Allison was the oldest of our participants, born in 1962. We only have a few older at this time. Most of our participants are children's parents. We suspect this comes from the active participation parents take in their children's lives. We encourage all who are affected by this rare disorder to contact us. The more information we gather, the better chances we have of finding a solution.
An important discovery to note has not been the cause or solution to this disorder, but the social implications involved. We are focused on helping parents understand what a child undergoes with a rather uncontrollable facial problem. We feel that teaching children to express themselves about their jaw-wink is important. Helping others to understand it is a part of them is one way to overcome some of the obstacles they may face with their peers.
Disclaimer: The Marcus Gunn Foundation is not a group of doctors and should only be considered a source of support, potential direction in which to proceed and information from which statistics have been gathered.
NOTE: The Marcus Gunn Pupil is a different disorder. If you have reached this page seeking information about the "pupil" disorder, we will do our best to direct you to a better source of information.
Request to join the Marcus Gunn Group Yahoo Group through marcusgunngroup@yahoogroups.com
Contact Allison here, directly through E-mail.
*As of 2009, the Marcus Gunn Group became a non-profit organization and renamed to the Marcus Gunn Foundation.