Acute cerebellar ataxia is sudden, uncoordinated muscle movement due to disease or injury to the cerebellum. This is the area in the brain that controls muscle movement. Ataxia means loss of muscle coordination, especially of the hands and legs.
Cerebellar ataxia; Ataxia - acute cerebellar; Cerebellitis; Post-varicella acute cerebellar ataxia; PVACA
Acute cerebellar ataxia in children, particularly younger than age 3, may occur several days or weeks after an illness caused by a virus.
Viral infections that may cause this include chickenpox, Coxsackie disease, Epstein-Barr, echovirus, among others.
Other causes of acute cerebellar ataxia include:
Ataxia may affect movement of the middle part of the body from the neck to the hip area (the trunk) or the arms and legs (limbs).
When the person is sitting, the body may move side-to-side, back-to-front, or both. Then the body quickly moves back to an upright position.
When a person with ataxia of the arms reaches for an object, the hand may sway back and forth.
Common symptoms of ataxia include:
Treatment depends on the cause:
Jeremy Schmahmann is a Neurologist in Boston, Massachusetts. Schmahmann has been practicing medicine for over 43 years and is rated as an Elite expert by MediFind in the treatment of Acute Cerebellar Ataxia. He is also highly rated in 49 other conditions, according to our data. His top areas of expertise are Acute Cerebellar Ataxia, Spinocerebellar Ataxia, Olivopontocerebellar Atrophy, and Drug Induced Dyskinesia. Schmahmann is currently accepting new patients.
Alexis Brice practices in Paris, France. Brice is rated as an Elite expert by MediFind in the treatment of Acute Cerebellar Ataxia. She is also highly rated in 38 other conditions, according to our data. Her top areas of expertise are Acute Cerebellar Ataxia, Spastic Paraplegia Type 7, Spasticity, Drug Induced Dyskinesia, and Deep Brain Stimulation.
Giovanni Stevanin practices in Paris, France. Stevanin is rated as an Elite expert by MediFind in the treatment of Acute Cerebellar Ataxia. He is also highly rated in 25 other conditions, according to our data. His top areas of expertise are Spastic Paraplegia Type 7, Paraplegia, Spasticity, and Acute Cerebellar Ataxia.
People whose condition was caused by a recent viral infection should make a full recovery without treatment in a few months. Strokes, bleeding, or infections may cause permanent symptoms.
In rare cases, movement or behavioral disorders may persist.
Call your provider if any symptoms of ataxia appear.
Summary: To produce hand's movement directed towards a target, the investigator must combine several sensory information, such as vision or proprioception. The posterior parietal cortex (PPC) is a region of the cortex involved in this multisensory integration. A lesion of the PPC cause a visuo-motor trouble called optic ataxia but these patients also have perceptual troubles. The aim of the study is to und...
Summary: This study will investigate the how the cerebellum is involved in speech motor learning over time and short-term corrections in patients with cerebellar ataxia and healthy controls. This will be accomplished through three approaches: behavioral studies, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). During behavioral studies, participants will be asked to speak into...
Published Date: January 28, 2021
Published By: Evelyn O. Berman, MD, Assistant Professor of Neurology and Pediatrics at University of Rochester, Rochester, NY. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.
Kuo SH, Lin CC, Ashizawa T. Cerebellar ataxia. In: Jankovic J, Mazziotta JC, Pomeroy SL, Newman NJ, eds. Bradley and Daroff's Neurology in Clinical Practice. 8th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2022:chap 23.
Mink JW. Movement disorders. In: Kliegman RM, St. Geme JW, Blum NJ, Shah SS, Tasker RC, Wilson KM, eds. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 21st ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2020:chap 615.