EastEnders heartache for Whitney Dean as daughter diagnosed with rare health condition

One year on since Whitney Dean and Zack Hudson tragically lost their baby girl Peach, the loved-up EastEnders couple are set to face another heartbreaking health tragedy in the coming days, when foster daughter Britney is diagnosed with Usher syndrome. In scenes due to air on Monday April 22, Zack and Whitney are shocked to discover that Britney has Type 2 Usher Syndrome following their trip to the hospital and are devastated when the doctor shares that the condition will lead to sight and hearing impairments in the future.

Devastated by the diagnosis, Whitney immediately tries to learn more about Britney’s condition, but Zack worries that the added stress is too much for Whitney while she is so heavily pregnant.

Undeterred, Whitney tries to maintain normality for Britney and sends her to school for her very first day, but when Zack suggests enrolling her at the GP and telling them about Britney’s condition, Whitney lies and insists she’s already done it fearing the truth will be exposed.

Later, Whitney tries to persuade Sonia to bypass the checks required to register Britney, as she fears the truth about her unofficial fostering of the youngster will come to light. However, after realising that Britney’s health must come first, the ailing mum is left with no option but to haul Keeley, Britney’s birth mum to the GP to sign her up.

In a further blow, Whitney later misses a crucial baby scan when Britney’s school calls to inform her that her hearing aids aren’t working. Prioritising her foster daughter’s needs, Whitney puts the schoolgirl first - leading to an intense argument with Zack back at home.

The new storyline marks the first time Usher syndrome has been included in a major British soap, although Emmerdale stars Laura Norton and Mark Jordan have openly discussed their real-life experience of the illness after both of their young children were diagnosed with it.

Usher syndrome is primarily a rare genetic condition that leads to partial or total hearing loss and vision loss that worsens over time. The hearing loss comes from abnormalities in the inner ear, while the vision problems are due to a disease called retinitis pigmentosa, affecting the layer of light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye.

There are three different types of Usher syndrome: I, II, and III, with each type characterised by the severity of hearing loss, whether balance problems are present or not, and when signs and symptoms start to show. Most people with type I are born with severe to profound hearing loss, and their vision tends to worsen during the first few years of life.

By contrast, type two, which is form Britney has, is less severe, and people with this type are born with hearing loss, but their vision doesn't start to deteriorate until they're teenagers or adults. The hearing loss associated with this form of Usher syndrome can range from mild to severe. The most common difficulty is identifying high-frequency sounds, such as soft speech or the letters d and t.

Unlike type I, this form of Usher syndrome doesn't affect a person's balance. The last kind of Usher syndrome is Type III, which happens later in life.

EastEnders continues Monday to Thursday at 7:30pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer