What disease does Dustin in Stranger Things have?

Dustin Henderson suffers from cleidocranial dysplasia in Stranger Things.

Dustin Henderson is one of the main characters from the famous Netflix science-fiction-horror drama series Stranger Things. Born to Claudia and Walter Henderson, Dustin was introduced in the series from the very first season. He is the friend of Mike Wheeler, Eleven, Lucas Sinclair, Will Byers, Max Mayfield, Eddie Munson, and Steve Harrington and also one of the members of The Party.

About the character’s personality, Dustin Henderson is a nerdy kid who often gets targeted by bullies due to his rare medical condition. However, he is quite loyal to his friends. After one of his friends, Will disappears, Dustin along with Mike and Lucas make it their life’s mission to find him and that’s how they stumble across the mysterious Eleven, who they later befriend. Speaking of his personal life, Dustin dates Suzie Bingham in the show who he met during one of his camps.

What caused Dustin to have cleidocranial dysplasia in Stranger Things?

Cleidocranial dysplasia is a genetic condition that affects the teeth and bones, such as the skull, face, spine, collarbones, and legs. The person suffering from this condition either has deformed, fragile, or absent bones. In Dustin’s case, his teeth grow abnormally due to cleidocranial dysplasia. As per official studies, CCD is passed down as an autosomal dominant trait.

For the unversed, Gaten Matarazzo who plays Dustin Henderson in Stranger Things, actually suffers from cleidocranial dysplasia. His real-life condition is what inspired the makers to include the same for his character to bring light to it.

While speaking to Health Insight on living with the condition, Matarazzo said, “My experience with cleidocranial dysplasia has been pretty good, honestly. I have a very mild case of it and it hasn’t really caused me to be bullied or anything. It has benefited me in many ways because it’s basically started my acting career.”

“It’s given me an opportunity to talk about it and not feel ashamed of it. I can still do the same things as many other kids and I can’t say the same about other people that have this condition. Thankfully my case is very mild and I can live like a normal kid but not everyone that has the condition can, and that’s why I’m talking about it, because many people are not as fortunate as I am.”

Who plays the role of Dustin Henderson in Stranger Things?

As mentioned earlier, Dustin Henderson is played by Gaten Matarazzo, who is an American television actor. Born on September 8, 2002, the actor started his career as a Broadway actor working in shows like Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, and Les Misérables among others.

Apart from the series Stranger Things, the actor has made appearances in other shows like Prank Encounters and Nickelodeon's Unfiltered among others. Gaten is also seen in movies like Honor Society, The Angry Birds Movie 2, and Please Don't Destroy: The Treasure of Foggy Mountain among others.