Chorea in Adults Follow-up

Updated: Jul 01, 2019
  • Author: Pradeep C Bollu, MD; Chief Editor: Selim R Benbadis, MD  more...
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Follow-up

Complications

See the list below:

  • The severity of the abnormal involuntary movements may cause rhabdomyolysis or local trauma in some patients.

  • The swallowing difficulties and tongue dystonia usually present in neuroacanthocytosis patients may cause aspiration pneumonia and early death in some patients.

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Prognosis

Prognosis depends on the cause of the chorea. Huntington disease (HD) has a poor prognosis, because all patients will die of complications of the disease. Similarly, patients with neuroacanthocytosis may develop aspiration pneumonia, which can cause early death.

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Patient Education

Genetic counseling

See the list below:

  • Both Huntington disease and benign hereditary chorea are inherited in an autosomal dominant pattern. Therefore, if there is a couple planning to conceive and one of the pair has Huntington disease, they should be educated that there is a 1-in-2 chance that each child they have could be affected.

  • Wilson disease and neuroacanthocytosis both have an autosomal recessive inheritance pattern. Therefore, if both parents are carriers, there is a 1-in-4 chance that each child could be affected, and a 1-in-2 chance that each child could be a carrier.

  • Genetic testing is available for each of these conditions. Testing should be offered to potentially affected patients and their family members, and they should be informed about the potential risk of inheriting the disease, clinical manifestations of the disease, treatment options, and prognosis. However, patients refuse to have testing for a number of reasons, and this should be respected.

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