This year, the RECORDER team marked Rare Disease Day in a multitude of ways. From trumpet lamps and zebras bedecked with fairy lights to stripey socks via trips to see Nottingham City Centre lit up for Light Night, the RECORDER team (and family members) enthusiastically participated in #Light up for Rare

Stripes for rare disease day 

Some of us chose to include stripes in our images to draw attention to diagnostic practices when it comes to rare disease. Doctors, especially in primary care, are taught the adage, “When you hear hoofbeats, don’t expect to see a Zebra,” as a reminder that most conditions patients present with are common ones.  

Many patients with rare diseases go through protracted periods before their condition is diagnosed (and before they can receive appropriate treatment). The stripes are a reminder to look out for the zebras and not just horses. Rare diseases aren’t rare for those who have them.