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Huntington's disease - Symptom

Alternative Names

Huntington chorea

Symptoms:

Behavior changes may occur before movement problems, and can include:

  • Behavioral disturbances
  • Hallucinations
  • Irritability
  • Moodiness
  • Restlessness or fidgeting
  • Paranoia
  • Psychosis

Abnormal and unusual movements include:

  • Facial movements, including grimaces
  • Head turning to shift eye position
  • Quick, sudden, sometimes wild jerking movements of the arms, legs, face, and other body parts
  • Slow, uncontrolled movements
  • Unsteady gait

Dementia that slowly gets worse, including:

  • Disorientation or confusion
  • Loss of judgment
  • Loss of memory
  • Personality changes
  • Speech changes

Additional symptoms that may be associated with this disease:

Symptoms in children:

  • Rigidity
  • Slow movements
  • Tremor

Signs and tests:

The doctor will perform a physical exam and may ask questions about the patient's family history and symptoms. A neurological exam will also be done. The doctor may see signs of:

  • Dementia
  • Abnormal movements
  • Abnormal reflexes
  • "Prancing" and wide walk
  • Hesitant speech or poor enunciation

A head CT scan may show loss of brain tissue, especially deep in the brain.

Other tests that may show signs of Huntington's disease include:

Genetic tests are available to determine whether a person carries the gene for Huntington's disease.

  • Reviewed last on: 4/30/2011
  • Kevin Sheth, MD, Department of Neurology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, III, MD, Professor of Medicine, Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine;David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

References

Lang A. Other movement disorders. In: Goldman L, Ausiello D, eds. Cecil Medicine. 23rd ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier;2007:chap 434.

Jankovic J, Shannon KM. Movement disorders. In: Bradley WG, Daroff RB, Fenichel GM, Jankovic J, eds. Bradley: Neurology in Clinical Practice. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Butterworth-Heinemann Elsevier; 2008:chap 75.

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