2023-09-29 21:56:22
Ataxia is a motor disorder characterized by a lack of coordination in the performance of voluntary movements that impairs precision and speed. This lack of coordination affects the limbs, walking and speech.
The diagnosis of this disorder is always clinical and depends on the analysis of the symptoms and signs that the patient presents. On the other hand, the neurological examination must be thorough and focused on the examination of eye movements, coordination of movements and gait.
Symptoms of ataxia
Fundamentally, the symptoms of ataraxia affect voluntary movements. Among the most characteristic are the following:
Instability when walking, which causes an increase in the base of support during walking. Incoordination of voluntary movements in arms and legs. Speech alteration with difficulty in articulation and control of voice volume, tone and breathing. Alteration of eye movements that can produce double vision or the sensation of object movements.
Main causes
Ataxia can be the main initial and only symptom throughout the evolution of a disease or it can appear due to other causes, which can be divided into the following:
Acquired causes
Metabolic, nutritional and toxic. Ataxias of immunological cause. Produced by structural lesions of the cerebellum or its connections. Degenerative.
hereditary causes
Depending on the inheritance pattern, they can be classified as dominant or recessive autonomic. All of them lead to a loss of ambulation in about 15 years.
Diagnosis of ataxia
As we have said, the diagnosis of this disorder is always clinical and is based on the analysis of the signs and symptoms that the patient presents. During the neurological examination it will be important to check if there is alteration of other structures of the central and/or peripheral nervous system, in addition to the cerebellum.
Likewise, it is essential to perform a brain MRI with which to verify the integrity and/or injury of the cerebellum and the rest of the central nervous system.
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