Cerebellar Ataxia Jose S. Santiago M.D.

Cerebellar Ataxia Cerebellar- pertaining to the cerebellum Lesion- disease or injury Ataxia- lack of muscle coordination; unsteady gait

Cerebellar Ataxia Cerebellar Ataxia- uncoordinated movement due to lesion in the cerebellum Ataxic gait- unsteady walk

Cerebellar Ataxia Causes of cerebellar ataxia: 1. genetic- inherited 2. congenital- present at birth 3. infectious- from bacteria or viruses 4. pharmacologic- due to drugs or alcohol 5. brain tumors 6. strokes 7. injuries

Cerebellar Ataxia Symptoms of cerebellar ataxia: 1. unsteady gait or movements 2. dysarthria- difficulty in pronouncing words 3.headache and dizziness 4. nausea and vomiting 5. nystagmus- uncoordinated eye movements

Cerebellar Ataxia Treatment: 1. Treat the cause 2. Physical therapy 3. Occupational therapy 4. Speech therapy

Cerebellar Ataxia A 50 year-old man was hospitalized with cerebellar ataxia. He comes to the physical therapy and occupational therapy departments for the treatment of ataxia.

Cerebellar Ataxia T: Therapist P: Patient G: Guardian T: Hello. Good ________. P: Good ________. T: Please make your _____ ____ on the bed. G: Yes sir. Can you _____ me? T: Sure. Can we _____ the ______? P: Yes. When I ___, my hand does not ____ to my _______. The direction is wrong.

Cerebellar Ataxia T: Yes, I know. It will be _________ soon. P: So I cannot _________ by myself. T: Okay. Now, try to ______ my ______ with your hand. P: It is ______ to do. T: Try to do as much as ________. P: Yes sir.

Cerebellar Ataxia T: Now touch my _______ with your finger tip. No, it’s wrong. Look at my _______ carefully. P: I tried to do it but my hand goes ____________. T: _______ you try again and again. P: Okay, I will ___ it.

Cerebellar Ataxia T: Now try to touch your _____ with your ______. P: No I cannot. When I try _____ that, I touch my ______ instead of my _____. T: Practice all these _____ regularly. Then you can do it. Now I will make you ____ on the Swiss ball. It helps to ____ your balance. If you have any _____ please let me know.

Cerebellar Ataxia After sometime: T: Now we will ___ gait training. I will hold you from the ____. You can _____ the foot marks on the floor. When you walk you should look at the _______ and the foot marks. P: Okay sir. I will ___ it. T: ______ slowly. I will _____ you.

Cerebellar Ataxia Occupational therapy: T: Now I will _____ you some tasks you should do. This is a peg board. You should ____ the blocks into the hole. P: Yes. T: After you ___ this, I will put your hand on the ______. You should do the _______ movement.

Cerebellar Ataxia A few minutes later: T: Your ______ is over. You can go to _____ now. P: Thank you sir. T: _________.