Ataxia

For other uses of "Ataxia", see Ataxia (disambiguation).

Ataxia (from Greekataxi?, meaning failure to put in order) is unsteady and clumsy motion of the limbsor trunkdue to a failure of the gross coordination of musclemovements.

Ataxia often occurs when parts of the nervous system that control movement are damaged. People with ataxia experience a failure of muscle control in their arms and legs, resulting in a lack of balance and coordination or a disturbance of gait. While the term ataxia is primarily used to describe this set of symptoms, it is sometimes also used to refer to a family of disorders. It is not, however, a specific diagnosis.

Most disorders that result in ataxia cause cells in the part of the brain called the cerebellumto degenerate, or atrophy. Sometimes the spine is also affected. The phrases cerebellar degeneration and spinocerebellar degeneration are used to describe changes that have taken place in a person?s nervous system; neither term constitutes a specific diagnosis. Cerebellar and spinocerebellar degeneration have many different causes. The age of onset of the resulting ataxia varies depending on the underlying cause of the degeneration.

Many ataxias are hereditary and are classified by chromosomal location and pattern of inheritance: autosomal dominant, in which the affected person inherits a normal gene from one parent and a faulty gene from the other parent; and autosomal recessive, in which both parents pass on a copy of the faulty gene. Among the more common inherited ataxias are Friedreich's ataxiaand Machado-Joseph disease. Sporadic ataxias can also occur in families with no prior history.

Ataxia can also be acquired. Conditions that can cause acquired ataxia include stroke, multiple sclerosis, tumors, lesionsof the central nervous systemor spinal cord, alcoholism, peripheral neuropathy, metabolic disorders, and vitamin deficiencies.

Dysdiadochokinesiais a sign of cerebellar ataxia.

University of Minnesotaresearchers suggested in 2006 that Abraham Lincolnmay have suffered from spinocerebellar ataxia type 5, thus accounting for his clumsy gait.[1][2]

See also

• Spinocerebellar ataxia
• Sensory ataxia
• Gait abnormality

External links

• National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)
• National Ataxia Foundation
• Ataxia UKde:Ataxie

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This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
It uses material from the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ataxia Wikipedia article Ataxia.