A 40-year-old man with adult-onset spastic-ataxia and tremor showed a leukoencephalopathy with a hypomyelinating pattern on brain MRI. Whole-exome sequencing identified two novel likely pathogenic variants in KIF1C, a gene associated with spastic-ataxia type 2 (SPAX2). This case supports including KIF1C among the causes of adult-onset hypomyelinating leukodystrophies and highlights the diagnostic overlap between spastic-ataxia, hereditary spastic paraplegia, and hypomyelinating leukodystrophies, underscoring the limitations of current nomenclature.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD), contrast enhancement (CE) is a disease activity marker, but there is uncertainty about the optimal delay, if any, between contrast injection and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) acquisition to avoid false-negative results. We acquired axial two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) T1-weighted gradient-echo every 6 min from 0 to 36 min after contrast administration (gadobutrol 0.1 mmol/kg) in an ALD patient with enlarging white matter lesions and progressive neuropsychological symptoms, using a 3-T magnet.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Leukodystrophy with vanishing white matter (LVWM) is an autosomal recessive disease with typical pediatric-onset caused by mutations in one of the five EIF2B genes. Adult-onset (AO) cases are rare.
Methods: In this observational study, we reviewed clinical and laboratory information of the patients with AO-LVWM assessed at two referral centers in Italy and Portugal from Jan-2007 to Dec-2019.
Ann Clin Transl Neurol
January 2022
Background And Purpose: Little is known about hypomyelinating leukodystrophies (HLDs) in adults. The aim of this study was to investigate HLD occurrence, clinical features, and etiology among undefined leukoencephalopathies in adulthood.
Methods: We recruited the patients with cerebral hypomyelinating magnetic resonance imaging pattern (mild T2 hyperintensity with normal or near-normal T1 signal) from our cohort of 62 adult index cases with undefined leukoencephalopathies, reviewed their clinical features, and used a leukoencephalopathy-targeted next generation sequencing panel.
Auton Neurosci
December 2020
We describe clinical and laboratory findings in 35 patients tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction on nasopharyngeal swab experiencing one or multiple syncope at disease onset. Clinical neurologic and cardiologic examination, and electrocardiographic findings were normal. Chest computed tomography showed findings consistent with interstitial pneumonia.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) encompasses different neurological phenotypes, ranging from the most severe cerebral forms (C-ALD) to the less severe adrenomyeloneuropathy (AMN). As visual system can be varyingly involved, we aimed at exploring whether optical coherence tomography (OCT) may detect retinal abnormalities and their longitudinal changes in adult ALD patients.
Methods: In this cross-sectional and longitudinal study, we measured the thicknesses of peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (pRNFL), macular ganglion cell complex (mGCC), and segmented inner and outer macula at baseline and their changes over time in 11 symptomatic adult ALD males and 10 age- and sex-matched healthy controls.
Alexander disease (ALXDRD) is a rare astrocytic leukodystrophy caused by GFAP mutations. The adult-onset (AO) variant is usually characterized by gradual onset of spastic ataxia and bulbar symptoms with slowly progressive course. We report two AO-ALXDRD cases with rapid worsening after minor head trauma.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (X-ALD) encompasses several clinical and neuroimaging phenotypes, including cerebral X-ALD, the most common phenotype in children, and adrenomyeloneuropathy, the most common phenotype in adults. A spinocerebellar variant of X-ALD has been described in individuals from the Far East, but the criteria for its diagnosis are unclear.
Case Report: A 35-year-old man from Albania was assessed because of a familial, slowly progressive spastic-ataxic gait associated with neurogenic bladder, sexual dysfunctions, and manic-like behavior.