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home > About Ataxia > Hereditary Ataxia > Episodic ataxia
Episodic ataxia
Episodic ataxias are characterized by intermittent symptoms or episodes that can vary in duration, lasting from minutes to days, consisting of slurred speech, a feeling of dizziness, ringing in the ears, abnormal posturing, and sometimes paralysis of one side of the body. Many patients with episodic ataxia complain of migraine headaches. Attacks can be as frequent as several times a week, but may occur much less frequently, once or twice a year. Precipitating cause for episodic ataxia attacks are unknown, though sometimes are attributed to ingestion of alcohol or caffeine, stress, fatigue, toluene toxicity, and some medications such as phenytoin. The disease is usually autosomal dominant. The children of parents with this disease will have 50 percent chance of development. The attacks may start in childhood or in adulthood. Clinical testing for some forms of the disease is available. The attacks may respond to acetazolamide.
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