Kennedy Disease Workup

  • Author: Paul E Barkhaus, MD; Chief Editor: Nicholas Lorenzo, MD   more...
 
Updated: Sep 7, 2010
 

Laboratory Studies

  • Depending on level of suspicion, immediate genetic testing for Kennedy disease (KD) may be performed to confirm the diagnosis, obviating other tests, such as EMG and enzyme studies for hexosaminidase deficiency. The availability of genetic testing markedly expedites the evaluation for KD.[55]
  • Problems may arise in resolving apparent positive results obtained before genetic testing is done. For instance, serum creatine kinase (CK) testing is not indicated, yet the CK level may be elevated substantially. One of the author's patients had been treated for inflammatory myopathy for years before the correct diagnosis was made. In another case, the patient was aggressively treated for myasthenia gravis (including thymectomy) before KD was diagnosed.[56] Sorenson and Klein have also reported elevation in CK and transaminases levels in asymptomatic patients with KD.[57]
  • Appropriate initial testing and monitoring is indicated because of associated conditions such as diabetes mellitus, lipid disorders, and other endocrine disorders.
  • If genetic findings are negative in an individual who has clinical findings suggestive of KD, other laboratory investigations may be indicated (see Table 1, Table 2).
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Imaging Studies

  • Patients with KD tend to be middle aged or elderly, and they may have common neurologic conditions, such as spondylosis.
  • If cervical spondylosis is a consideration, or if marked asymmetry in muscle weakness is noted on follow-up of a patient with KD, imaging of the cervical spine is indicated.
  • MRI of the brain is indicated if clinical symptoms or endocrinologic testing suggest microadenoma.
  • Hamano et al reported MRI studies of the leg muscle in patients with KD and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.[58] In contrast to patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis who showed atrophy, patients with KD showed associated high-signal intensity with atrophy consistent with fatty degeneration. This was seen in both proximal as well as distal muscles.
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Other Tests

  • Other tests may not be needed if the results of genetic testing are positive.
  • Other tests may include electrodiagnostic studies.[59, 44]
    • Somatosensory evoked potentials: The potentials may be abnormal, reflecting dysfunction in the pathways of the posterior column.
    • Nerve conductions: Compound muscle action potentials have normal or reduced amplitude. Sensory conductions show normal, reduced, or absent sensory-nerve action potentials.
  • Needle-electrode examination may be needed. A full discussion of electrodiagnostic approaches to motor neuropathy is beyond the scope of this article. In a slowly progressive disease such as KD, fibrillation potentials may be relatively infrequent. Other insertional and spontaneous activities, such as complex repetitive discharges, myokymia, and fasciculation potentials, also vary in prominence. When myokymia is present, spontaneous discharges of grouped motor-unit action potentials (MUAPs) may be seen and sometimes correspond to the clinical observation of the quivering chin when the patient is at rest.
    • Needle-electrode examination should reveal a diffuse, chronic neurogenic process based on changes in the MUAPs, such as complexity, increased amplitude and duration, and reduced recruitment rate. Muscles are affected unequally (side-to-side asymmetry, proximal vs distal muscle).
    • The study should be planned to demonstrate multisegmental involvement of muscles (myotomes) in at least 3 of 4 regions (ie, bulbar, cervical, thoracic, or lumbar), similar to the El Escorial criteria[47] used to support the diagnosis of ALS. In the limbs, 3 muscles supplied by 3 roots and peripheral nerves should be studied to ascertain the presence of a diffuse chronic neurogenic process. In KD, the bulbar region should be emphasized.
    • Increase in MUAP complexity (eg, increase in phases, turns, or the presence of late components or satellites) is a nonspecific finding and may be seen as an early abnormal finding in neurogenic or myopathic processes.
    • If the process is established and weakness is present, a reduced number of moderately to markedly enlarged MUAPs may be observed. This finding is expected in a slowly progressive, chronic neurogenic process in which one third to half the motor neurons in a given muscle may be lost before clinical weakness manifests (see images below). Motor-unit action potentials recorded from the bicMotor-unit action potentials recorded from the biceps brachii in a patient with Kennedy disease. Upper tracing shows 2 action potentials discharging during low-to-moderate effort. In a healthy person, additional discharges are expected. (Calibration is 1 mV per division on the vertical axis and 10 ms per division on the horizontal axis.) Potential on the left is approximately 1.2 mV and 26 ms. It is moderately increased in amplitude, almost twice the upper limit in duration, and shows marked irregularity or serrations (ie, turns) in the main component. Potential to the right is markedly increased in amplitude (approximately 3.3 mV), and its duration is at least 30 ms but cannot be measured on this tracing because it extends off to the right and qualifies as a giant motor-unit action potential. Bottom tracing shows the same 2 potentials at standard setting used to view motor-unit action potentials (0.1 mV per vertical division), which emphasizes their large size and complexity (ie, increased number of changes in polarity of the waveform) (copyright Paul E. Barkhaus, MD, 2000, with permission). Recording of motor-unit action potentials from theRecording of motor-unit action potentials from the pectoralis muscle in a patient with Kennedy disease. (Calibration is 1 mV per division on the vertical axis and 10 ms per division on the horizontal axis.) The patient's level of effort in activation is high. Therefore, the number of motor unit action potentials clearly is reduced, and the individual potentials observed are enlarged, consistent with a chronic neurogenic process (copyright Paul E. Barkhaus, MD, 2000, with permission).
    • Meriggioli and Rowin reported a case of KD with increased jitter on single-fiber EMG in a patient with KD who had fatigue with normal muscle strength on clinical evaluation.[60] Routine needle-electrode examination showed evidence of chronic motor axonopathy or neuronopathy. The authors postulated that abnormal neuromuscular transmission was the underlying mechanism of the patient's fatigue.
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Procedures

Given the availability of genetic testing, muscle and nerve biopsy are not indicated for diagnostic work-up in KD.

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Histologic Findings

In some instances, nerve and muscle biopsy may have been performed in cases of KD when the diagnosis was not suspect.

  • Sural-nerve biopsy may show loss of large-diameter myelinated axons.[12]
  • In the author's series, muscle biopsy showing marked predominance of type I muscle fibers with variable and diffuse atrophy was present in 2 patients in whom biopsy material was available.[56]
  • Predominance of type II muscle fibers has been described in other cases.
  • In another series, both neurogenic and myopathic changes were reported in muscle biopsies from patients with KD, as well as in female carriers of KD.[61]
  • When such muscle fiber type predominance is present, fiber-type grouping is not easily appreciated.
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Contributor Information and Disclosures
Author

Paul E Barkhaus, MD  Professor, Department of Neurology, Medical College of Wisconsin; Director of Neuromuscular Diseases, Milwaukee Veterans Administration Medical Center

Paul E Barkhaus, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Neurology, American Association of Neuromuscular and Electrodiagnostic Medicine, and American Neurological Association

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Specialty Editor Board

Rodrigo O Kuljis, MD  Esther Lichtenstein Professor of Psychiatry and Neurology, Director, Division of Cognitive and Behavioral Neurology, Department of Neurology, University of Miami School of Medicine

Rodrigo O Kuljis, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Neurology and Society for Neuroscience

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

Francisco Talavera, PharmD, PhD  Senior Pharmacy Editor, eMedicine

Disclosure: eMedicine Salary Employment

Neil A Busis, MD  Chief, Division of Neurology, Department of Medicine, Head, Clinical Neurophysiology Laboratory, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center-Shadyside

Neil A Busis, 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.

Selim R Benbadis, MD  Professor, Director of Comprehensive Epilepsy Program, Departments of Neurology and Neurosurgery, University of South Florida School of Medicine, Tampa General Hospital

Selim R Benbadis, MD is a member of the following medical societies: American Academy of Neurology, American Academy of Sleep Medicine, American Clinical Neurophysiology Society, American Epilepsy Society, and American Medical Association

Disclosure: UCB Pharma Honoraria Speaking, consulting; Lundbeck Honoraria Speaking, consulting; Cyberonics Honoraria Speaking, consulting; Glaxo Smith Kline Honoraria Speaking, consulting; Ortho McNeil Honoraria Speaking, consulting; Pfizer Honoraria Speaking, consulting; Sleepmed/DigiTrace Speaking, consulting

Chief Editor

Nicholas Lorenzo, MD  Chief Editor, eMedicine Neurology; Consulting Staff, Neurology Specialists and Consultants

Nicholas Lorenzo, MD is a member of the following medical societies: Alpha Omega Alpha and American Academy of Neurology

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.

References

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Note wasting in the thighs and shoulders. The arms hang down and are rotated internally so that the thumbs point toward the patient (ie, simian posture) rather than forward, as in a healthy individual. This observation strongly suggests weakness in shoulder girdle muscles (copyright Paul E. Barkhaus, MD, 2000, with permission).
Prominence of breast tissue consistent with gynecomastia in Kennedy disease (copyright Paul E. Barkhaus, MD, 2000, with permission).
The forehead of this patient with Kennedy disease is smooth, in fact, too smooth for a man this age. The smoothness is particularly noticeable when the patient tries to perform upgaze, when wrinkling of the forehead due to contraction of the frontalis is expected (copyright Paul E. Barkhaus, MD, 2000, with permission).
Photographs show asymmetry at rest due to facial weakness, which is enhanced when the muscles are activated by pursing the lips (copyright Paul E. Barkhaus, MD, 2000, with permission).
Note the scalloping of the borders of the tongue, which strongly suggests wasting. In addition, the marked wasting of the large group of glossal muscles on each side has caused them to separate and form a midline furrow (copyright Paul E. Barkhaus, MD, 2000, with permission).
Motor-unit action potentials recorded from the biceps brachii in a patient with Kennedy disease. Upper tracing shows 2 action potentials discharging during low-to-moderate effort. In a healthy person, additional discharges are expected. (Calibration is 1 mV per division on the vertical axis and 10 ms per division on the horizontal axis.) Potential on the left is approximately 1.2 mV and 26 ms. It is moderately increased in amplitude, almost twice the upper limit in duration, and shows marked irregularity or serrations (ie, turns) in the main component. Potential to the right is markedly increased in amplitude (approximately 3.3 mV), and its duration is at least 30 ms but cannot be measured on this tracing because it extends off to the right and qualifies as a giant motor-unit action potential. Bottom tracing shows the same 2 potentials at standard setting used to view motor-unit action potentials (0.1 mV per vertical division), which emphasizes their large size and complexity (ie, increased number of changes in polarity of the waveform) (copyright Paul E. Barkhaus, MD, 2000, with permission).
Recording of motor-unit action potentials from the pectoralis muscle in a patient with Kennedy disease. (Calibration is 1 mV per division on the vertical axis and 10 ms per division on the horizontal axis.) The patient's level of effort in activation is high. Therefore, the number of motor unit action potentials clearly is reduced, and the individual potentials observed are enlarged, consistent with a chronic neurogenic process (copyright Paul E. Barkhaus, MD, 2000, with permission).
Table 1. Primary Differential Diagnoses of Kennedy Disease
DiseaseDifferentiating Characteristics or Tests
ALSUpper motor neuron involvement with tendency for distal-greater-than-proximal weakness[47]
Spinal muscular atrophySee Table 2 below
Fascioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophyAutosomal dominant pattern with myopathic findings on muscle biopsy and EMG, positive genetic marker
Myasthenia gravis - Adult acquired formExtraocular muscle frequently involved, EMG consistent with neuromuscular transmission disorder, acetylcholine receptor antibodies frequently positive
Oculopharyngeal muscular dystrophyAutosomal dominant pattern, late onset, predominant involvement of bulbar muscle with ptosis and mild ophthalmoparesis, EMG and muscle biopsy results consistent with myopathic process, positive genetic marker
Hexosaminidase A deficiencyRectal biopsy, enzyme assay
Sandhoff diseaseRectal biopsy, enzyme assay
Syphilis (neurovascular form)Positive serology
Lead neuropathyIndex of suspicion based on potential exposure; anemia; elevated serum, blood, and urine lead levels
Motor neuron disease with macroglobulinemiaMonoclonal gammopathy[48]
Autosomal dominant cerebellar ataxia type IAmyotrophy occasionally prominent finding in SCAs, particularly types II and III; other clinical and laboratory findings suggest condition other than a pure motor-neuron process; appropriate tests of genetic markers for SCA
PolymyositisElevated serum creatine kinase, EMG and muscle-biopsy results consistent with inflammatory myopathy
Cervical spondylosisRostral cervical segmental myotomes (eg, C5, C6) commonly affected, but pattern on EMG testing is highly localizing; possible pyramidal-tract signs if spondylosis compresses spinal cord at same segmental level; no evidence of lower motor-neuro involvement in legs; imaging (eg, cervical MRI, myelography with low-dose CT) findings correlated with suspected lesion
Facial onset sensory and motor neuropathy (FOSMN syndrome)[49, 50] Slow progressing, trigeminal-onset sensory loss that may spread to upper limbs and torso, associated with lower motor syndrome with prominent bulbar involvement
Table 2. Patterns of Hereditary Spinal Muscular Atrophies that May Resemble Kennedy Disease
PatternCharacteristics*
Bulbar hereditary motor neuropathy affecting lowest 6 cranial nerves (Fazio-Londe disease)Autosomal recessive, onset in childhood, limbs not affected; when associated with deafness, pattern called Vialleto-van Laere disease, which may be X-linked or autosomal dominant
Scapuloperoneal hereditary motor neuropathyVariable transmission: dominant, recessive, X-linked; pattern of weakness as described; bulbar muscles spared
Fascioscapulohumeral hereditary motor neuropathyAutosomal dominant, pattern of weakness as described
Hereditary motor neuronopathy with oculopharyngeal involvementDescribed in Japanese individuals; autosomal recessive or dominant; ophthalmoplegia, dysarthria, and dysphagia
Hereditary proximal motor neuropathyVariable dominant or recessive inheritance; onset usually in first 2 decades; bulbar muscles spared
Hereditary distal motor neuropathyUsually recessive inheritance; onset usually in first 2 decades; bulbar muscles spared; autosomal-dominant distal spinal muscular atrophy linked to chromosome 7 (same locus as that of hereditary sensorimotor neuropathy type 2D)[51]
*In none of these diseases are results of test for the KD marker positive, and associated endocrinopathy or sensory nerve conduction abnormality should be absent.
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