Multiple system atrophy (MSA) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by a combination of autonomic failure plus cerebellar syndrome and/or parkinsonism. Dysphagia is a frequent and disabling symptom in MSA and its occurrence within 5 years of motor onset is an additional diagnostic feature. Dysphagia can lead to aspiration pneumonia, a recognized cause of death in MSA.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMultiple system atrophy (MSA) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by a combination of autonomic failure, cerebellar ataxia, and parkinsonism. Laryngeal stridor is an additional feature for MSA diagnosis, showing a high diagnostic positive predictive value, and its early occurrence might contribute to shorten survival. A consensus definition of stridor in MSA is lacking, and disagreement persists about its diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMultiple system atrophy (MSA) is a rare, progressive and ultimately fatal neurodegenerative disease with no known cause and no available disease modifying treatment. Known previously by various names including Shy-Drager Syndrome, olivopontocerebellar atrophy (OPCA) and striatonigral degeneration, MSA can be classified simultaneously as a movement disorder, an autonomic disorder, a cerebellar ataxia and an atypical parkinsonian disorder. Despite scholarly attempts to better describe the disease, awareness among medical practitioners about multiple system atrophy as a diagnostic possibility has been slow to catch on.
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