Huntingtons Disease

Also known as: HD, Huntingtons chorea

Definition
Huntington's disease is an inherited disease that causes certain nerve cells in the brain to waste away. It is a neuro-degenerative genetic disorder that affects muscle coordination and leads to cognitive decline and dementia.

Symptoms of Huntingtons disease include

mental confusion that gets worse over time abnormal posture involuntary movements

Symptoms usually develop between 35 and 50 years of age.

A defective gene
Only a single defective gene, inherited from either parent, is necessary to produce the disease. If one parent has a faulty gene, there is a 50 percent chance of the gene being passed on to children.

Huntington's disease is inherited in an autosomal dominant fashion. Inheritance is independent of gender, and the phenotype does not skip generations.

Diagnosis
Medical diagnosis of the onset of HD can be made following the appearance of physical symptoms specific to the disease. Genetic testing can be used to confirm a physical diagnosis if there is no family history of HD.
There is no cure. Medicines can help manage some of the symptoms, but cannot slow down or stop the disease.

Bibliography
"Huntington's Disease: MedlinePlus." National Library of Medicine - National Institutes of Health. Web. 27 Oct. 2011. <http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/huntingtonsdisease.html>. "Huntington's Chorea: Health Topics: University of Iowa Health Care." UI Health Care Home. Web. 27 Oct. 2011. <http://www.uihealthcare.com/topics/neurologicalhealth/neur3530.html>.

"Huntington's Disease." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 27 Oct. 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huntington's_disease>.