Huntington’s disease
is a rare, fatal hereditary brain disorder for which no known cure exists. While
symptoms vary even within a family, patients may suffer progressive loss of behavioural
and emotional, motor, and cognitive functioning due to brain-cell death in the
region of the basal ganglia at the base of the brain. Generally people with
Huntington’s disease experience involuntary movements, difficulty with speech
and swallowing, and weight loss. Some also experience memory loss, difficulty
concentrating, social withdrawal, mood swings, and anxiety. Symptoms appear
at almost any age but most commonly in patients between thirty and forty with
death following in ten to twenty years later.
Huntington’s disease
results from a build-up of dopamine, a neurotransmitter that is involved in movement
control and emotion-based behaviour. Although a reason as to why this build-up
occurs is still unknown, genetic techniques can identify some carriers of the
Huntington’s gene before and after birth prior to the development of symptoms.
Treatment for Huntington’s disease includes antipsychotic or anticonvulsant drugs
along with physiotherapy, as well as speech and swallowing therapy.
