olivopontocerebellar atrophy…

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central nervous system, opca, olivopontocerebellar degeneration, olivopontocerebellar atrophy, neurodegenerative illness that causes, certain brain areas, the olivary nucleus, pons, cerebellum, to shrink, sporadic olivopontocerebellar atrophy is not known, the disease is progressive, inherited, affect people, a known family history, sporadic form, symptoms tend to start sooner, the familial form, disease is slightly more common in men than in women, many symptoms, olivopontocerebellar atrophy but the predominant feature is progressive ataxia, clumsiness, difficulties, balance, slurring of speech, difficulty walking, tremor, abnormal movements, abnormal eye movements, sexual dysfunction, bowel, bladder problems, stiffness, rigidity, spasticity, neuropathy, difficulty swallowing, a thorough medical, neurological examination, a good history of symptoms, family history, necessary to make the diagnosis, no specific tests, an mri, the brain, a small cerebellum, brainstem, atrophied olives, in making the diagnosis but lack of these findings, not necessarily rule this condition out, tests, rule out other diagnoses, swallowing studies, evaluate a patient's ability to swallow food, liquid safely, no specific treatment, cure, therapy is aimed at supportive care, prevention of complications, evaluation of swallowing, use of techniques, prevent choking, speech, physical therapy, use of walking aids to help, balance, prevent falls, prognosis, the disease is progressive, incurable, different people progress at different rates, become significantly disabled, complications, injury from falls, choking, aspiration pneumonia, infection following inhalation of food, lungs, poor nutritional intake, due to difficulty swallowing, have any symptoms of olivopontocerebellar atrophy, referral to a neurologist.