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Cerebellar Abiotrophycerebellar and extrapyramidal nuclear abiotrophy, x-linked cerebellar ataxia, cerebellar cortical abioatrophy,Cerebellar cortical atrophy, Postnatal cerebellar cortical degeneration |
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| This
disorder has been reported sporadically, and may be inherited in the
German Shepherd. |
The disease
Cerebellar Abiotrophy involves the nervous and sensory systems.
It affects the cells of the cerebellum (in the brain) that regulate the
control and coordination of movement. Degeneration of these cells
results in a range of disorders associated with balance and movement
that become worse over time. Affected dogs are
usually normal at birth and begin to develop signs of cerebellar
abiotrophy when they start walking and moving around. After the onset
of disease, presenting signs include staggering, irregular muscular
movement, crossing of limbs, wide base stance and a tremor in the head
and legs. During movement, an affected dog will have trouble placing
limbs in the desired position and will often overreach the goal.
Tremors associated with the head and legs become more violent when the
dog is attempting a task. For example while eating, head tremors may
become exaggerated. As the disease progresses, signs will become more
obvious and will affect the dog's ability to move and balance to a
larger extent. Seizure-like episodes of muscle stiffness may also occur
as the disease worsens, becoming more frequent as the dog ages. In
cases where there are considerable periods of no deterioration, dogs
may show signs of improvement as they learn to compensate during
movement. The condition may become so severe however, that a dog can no
longer move around or eat properly. In such cases the affected animals
are euthanased due to the severity of the presenting signs.
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