Friday, January 6, 2017

Otoneurological Abnormalities in Patients with Friedreich's Ataxia

Zeigelboim BS, Mesti JC, Fonseca VR, Faryniuk JH, Marques JM, Cardoso RC, Teive HA. Int Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2017 Jan;21(1):79-85. doi: 10.1055/s-0036-1572529.

The most prevalent otoneurological symptoms were incoordination of movement, gait imbalance, and dizziness. Alterations in the vestibular examination occurred in 90% of patients, located mainly in the caloric test, with a predominance of deficient central vestibular system dysfunction.

The study emphasizes the importance of the vestibular evaluation for the topographic diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases since, in most cases, the otoneurological symptoms present early and such information may aid in the choice of procedures to be performed in clinical and therapeutic monitoring.