charcot-marie-tooth disease
Học thuậtThân thiện
A child with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease uses a walker to move across a room.
Definition
- Noun:
- A form of neuropathy: Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease is a hereditary neurological disorder that affects the peripheral nerves.
- Characterized by specific symptoms: It is marked by progressive weakness and wasting (atrophy) of the muscles in the hands and lower legs.
- Typical onset and progression: Symptoms often begin between childhood and young adulthood, with a slow progression. Affected individuals typically have a normal life span.
- Genetic inheritance: The condition is inherited, most commonly in an X-linked pattern (either recessive or dominant).
Usage Examples
- Noun:
- The diagnosis of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease explained his lifelong difficulty with fine motor skills.
- Research into Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease focuses on finding treatments to slow nerve degeneration.
- Despite having Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, she leads an active and fulfilling life.
Advanced Usage
- Medical Context: The term is used precisely in clinical neurology and genetics to describe this specific hereditary motor and sensory neuropathy (HMSN).
- The patient's family history was consistent with an X-linked dominant form of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease.
Variants and Related Words
- CMT: A common abbreviation for Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease.
- Genetic testing confirmed a diagnosis of CMT type 1A.
- Hereditary Motor and Sensory Neuropathy (HMSN): An alternative medical name for the same group of disorders.
- Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease is the most common form of hereditary motor and sensory neuropathy.
Synonyms
- Peroneal Muscular Atrophy: An older, descriptive name for the condition, referencing the atrophy of muscles in the lower legs.
- Hereditary Neuropathy: A broader term under which Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease is categorized.
Notes on Usage
- The term is always used as a proper noun and is typically hyphenated: Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease. It is named after the three physicians who first described it.
- It refers to a group of related disorders, not a single condition, which is why types (e.g., CMT1, CMT2) are often specified.
A child with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease uses a walker to move across a room.
Noun
- a form of neuropathy that can begin between childhood and young adulthood; characterized by weakness and atrophy of the muscles of the hands and lower legs; progression is slow and individuals affected can have a normal life span; inheritance is X-linked recessive or X-linked dominant