Huntington’s Disease(HD) is a degenerative brain disorder. It is a hereditary disorder which has devastating effects on the health of the individual…..
At the moment there is no effective treatment or cure.
The early signs of Huntington’s Disease can affect the cognitive ability and mobility. Other symptoms include depression, mood swings, forgetfulness, clumsiness, involuntary twitching and lack of coordination. As the disease accelerates, the concentration and short-term memory are reduced and there is an increase in involuntary movements of the head and limbs.
Eventually the ability to walk, speak and swallow become increasingly difficult. Eventually the person can no longer take care of himself/herself. Death follows from complications such as choking, infection or heart failure.
HD usually develop between the ages of 30 and 45, but early signs of the disease can appear as early as 2 years. It affects males and females equally and all ethnic and racial groups are affected.
Huntington’s disease is inherited through a faulty gene, which happens to be a dominant gene (H). Possession of one faulty gene of a pair inherited genes will result in the person having the disease.
Example:
Mother (Hh) has Huntington’s Disease. Father has normal genes (hh).
|
H |
h |
|
|
h |
hH |
hh |
|
h |
hH |
hh |
50% probability of any child having the disease (Possessing the H allele)
Further Information
Frequently Asked (FAQ) about Huntington’s Disease
Learning about Huntington’s Disease
http://www.ahdansw.asn.au/information/huntingtons.html
