All of you are probally wondering why my last posts are all informational. I did this to try to get you to understand what this disease is all about and where I am coming from. You may also be wondering why I have choosen to write on this topic. HD is very dear to my heart. My mother and aunt currently are suffering with this disease. My mother's mother, my grandmother, passed away due to HD.
In case you havent noticed, this disease is hereditary. My grandmother gave the defective gene to my mother and aunt. An individual with HD can pass the disease to their children. Its a 50-50 chance of getting the disease.
I bet you all are wondering if I have this disease? No, I do not. Based on pretesting and talking with doctors, I am currently not showing any physical signs. There is the option for me to get further testing to look at my DNA, to be 100% sure. I'm not really sure on what to do...
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Symptoms of Huntington's Chorea
There are two types, adult onset HD and juvenile HD. Individuals who develop adult onset HD most often show signs in mid-life. Juvenile HD appears very young, usually before the age of 21.
Individuals with junvenile HD show symptoms more rapdily. More than often, they also show signs of other mental disabilities and suffer from seizures. Individuals with juvienile HD usually die within 10 years of the onset of symptoms. It is safe to say that earlier the symptoms appear, the faster the disease progresses.
The symptoms of HD are similar to those of Parkinson's Disease. Some doctors have suggested that the first signs of HD are mood swings, which are usually followed by depression, irritabilty and anger. These symptoms tend to disappear over time, but there have been times when the anger does not and it leads to severe depression and hostile outbursts.
As the disease progresses, intellectual tasks such as memory, judgement, difficulty learning, remembering or making decisions become more and more difficult.
Some individuals may not show any early signs. In these instances, HD begins with the more severe symptoms. These include uncontrolled movements and problems with balance, which affects walking.
When the disease reaches a certain point vital functions become very difficult. The vital functions I am referring to are speaking, swallowing and eating.
The prognosis on the disease is eventually death, occuring 10-30 years after the onset of symptoms.
Individuals with junvenile HD show symptoms more rapdily. More than often, they also show signs of other mental disabilities and suffer from seizures. Individuals with juvienile HD usually die within 10 years of the onset of symptoms. It is safe to say that earlier the symptoms appear, the faster the disease progresses.
The symptoms of HD are similar to those of Parkinson's Disease. Some doctors have suggested that the first signs of HD are mood swings, which are usually followed by depression, irritabilty and anger. These symptoms tend to disappear over time, but there have been times when the anger does not and it leads to severe depression and hostile outbursts.
As the disease progresses, intellectual tasks such as memory, judgement, difficulty learning, remembering or making decisions become more and more difficult.
Some individuals may not show any early signs. In these instances, HD begins with the more severe symptoms. These include uncontrolled movements and problems with balance, which affects walking.
When the disease reaches a certain point vital functions become very difficult. The vital functions I am referring to are speaking, swallowing and eating.
The prognosis on the disease is eventually death, occuring 10-30 years after the onset of symptoms.
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