巴德-毕德氏症候群是一种遗传性疾病，患者出生后会有肥胖、多指、视网膜萎缩、性腺发育不全、肾脏畸形及学习困难等问题。但除视网膜外，大部分症状都具有高度的异质性，即便在同一家族，患者临床表现的差异也极为明显。

其发生率为于各地有不同数字，如北美约为1/100000，瑞典约为1/160000，但科威特地区因近亲通婚比例较高而达至1/13500，而纽芬兰岛可能因为共同祖先，盛行率也有1/17500。

遗传方面，其遗传方式为致病基因有14个，传统上认为其为体染色体隐性遗传，但也可能为较复杂的「三等位基因遗传」，即指在某个BBS对偶基因产生两个突变外，还需要再加上另一个BBS基因的突变才会造成异常。

Laurence-Moon-Biedl syndrome and Laurence-Moon-Biedl-Bardet redirect here. See below for an explanation.

Bardet–Biedl syndrome (BBS) is a ciliopathic human genetic disorder that produces many effects and affects many body systems. It is characterized principally by obesity, retinitis pigmentosa, polydactyly, hypogonadism, and renal failure in some cases. Historically, slower mental processing has also been considered a principal symptom but is now not regarded as such.