Tropical Myeloneuropathies Treatment & Management

  • Author: Eliad Culcea, MD; Chief Editor: Karen L Roos, MD   more...
 
Updated: Jan 14, 2011
 

Medical Care

The mainstay of treatment is symptomatic. No standard treatment is available for TAN or HAM/TSP.

  • HAM/TSP: A study of 131 patients reported that oral methylprednisolone produced excellent to moderate responses in 69.5% of patients.[9]
  • A 10-year, HAM/TSP, open-cohort trial using 1 g methylprednisolone every 3-4 months showed neurologic improvement with the use of corticosteroids.[10]
  • Symptomatic treatment is similar to that used in primary lateral sclerosis (please see article Primary Lateral Sclerosis for further details). Drugs that can be used include baclofen, tizanidine, and benzodiazepines. Physical therapy is used commonly in combination.
  • Patients with HAM/TSP or TAN sometimes report neuropathic pain. Useful drugs include antiepileptics (eg, carbamazepine, phenytoin, gabapentin, topiramate), baclofen, and tricyclic antidepressants. The dosages used usually are well bellow those used in the treatment of epilepsy. None of these drugs are approved by the FDA for this purpose.
  • Controlled trials of antiviral agents (eg, zidovudine) in HAM/TSP are under review.
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Consultations

Infectious disease specialist

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Diet

TAN: Supplementation with multivitamins is recommended, but in most cases only minor improvement occurs. In areas where cassava flour is used, following standard cassava processing measures is imperative.

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Contributor Information and Disclosures
Author

Eliad Culcea, MD  Consulting Staff, Department of Neurology, Great Falls Clinic

Eliad Culcea, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Neurology and American Association of Neuromuscular and Electrodiagnostic Medicine

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Coauthor(s)

Friedhelm Sandbrink, MD  Assistant Professor of Neurology, Georgetown University School of Medicine; Assistant Clinical Professor of Neurology, George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences; Director, EMG Laboratory and Chief, Chronic Pain Clinic, Department of Neurology, Washington Veterans Affairs Medical Center

Friedhelm Sandbrink, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Neurology

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Specialty Editor Board

Carmel Armon, MD, MSc, MHS  Professor of Neurology, Tufts University School of Medicine; Chief, Division of Neurology, Baystate Medical Center

Carmel Armon, MD, MSc, MHS is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Neurology, American Academy of Sleep Medicine, American Association of Neuromuscular and Electrodiagnostic Medicine, American Clinical Neurophysiology Society, American College of Physicians, American Epilepsy Society, American Medical Association, American Neurological Association, American Stroke Association, Massachusetts Medical Society, Movement Disorders Society, and Sigma Xi

Disclosure: Avanir Pharmaceuticals Consulting fee Consulting

Francisco Talavera, PharmD, PhD  Senior Pharmacy Editor, eMedicine

Disclosure: eMedicine Salary Employment

Florian P Thomas, MD, MA, PhD, Drmed  Director, Spinal Cord Injury Unit, St Louis Veterans Affairs Medical Center; Director, National MS Society Multiple Sclerosis Center; Director, Neuropathy Association Center of Excellence, Professor, Department of Neurology and Psychiatry, Associate Professor, Institute for Molecular Virology, and Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, St Louis University School of Medicine

Florian P Thomas, MD, MA, PhD, Drmed is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Neurology, American Neurological Association, American Paraplegia Society, Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers, and National Multiple Sclerosis Society

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Chief Editor

Karen L Roos, MD  John and Nancy Nelson Professor of Neurology, Professor of Neurological Surgery, Department of Neurology, Indiana University School of Medicine

Karen L Roos, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Neurology and American Neurological Association

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

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Light microscopy of thoracic spinal cord of 2 patients with HTLV-1–associated myelopathy (Klüver-Barrera staining). (Source: Aye et al, 2000, Fig. 1.)
Light microscopy of perivascular inflammatory infiltration in the spinal cord (A, C) and in the brain (B, D) (A, B H&E; C, D Elastica Van Gieson; A, C x400; B, D x200). (Source: Aye et al, 2000, Fig. 2.)
Light microscopy of the middle thoracic spinal cord (A, C, E) and subcortical white matter of the brain (B, D, F). Fibrotic changes are seen even in the capillaries (arrows) (A, B, F H&E; C-E Elastica van Gieson; A, C, D, F x400; B x300; E x100). (Source: Aye et al, 2000, Fig. 3.)
Immunostaining of the infiltrating cells in the thoracic spinal cord (A, C, E) and subcortical white matter of the brain (B, D, F) (A, B UCHL-1 [antibody to CD45RO]; C, D CD8; E, F OPD-4; A-F x150). (Source: Aye et al, 2000, Fig. 4.)
Immunostaining of the infiltrating cells in the thoracic spinal cord (A, C) and subcortical white matter of brain (B, D) (A, B UCHL-1[antibody to CD45RO]; C, D CD8; A-D x160). (Source: Aye et al, 2000, Fig. 5.)
 
 
 
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