Metabolic diseases are when you have to little or too much of something. Also, metabolic diseases are usually common in autosomal diseases like Huntington’s. Huntington’s disease is caused by a polyglutamine expansion mutation. This means that “Striatal GABAergic medium spiny neurons (striatal neurons) are particularly vulnerable to HD, being progressively depleted in strong correlation with symptom severity (Oliveira, 2010 pg 1).” Huntington’s disease slowly diminishes the spiny neurons. If they are diminished, it means there are less of them in the brain making Huntington’s disease a metabolic disorder. Neurons in the striatum dying off were causing low temperature …show more content…
A precise history and family history is looked into, and usually with this information it is easier to tell if the person has the gene. Although, tings can get difficult when the patient does not know the parent or the parent has died. Autopsies are sometimes required and medical history is looked at. When the doctors look at the DNA they look for “…CAG- repeat of at least 36 on the Huntington gene on chromosome 4 (Roos, 2010 pg 5).” This should give the doctors an easy answer does the patient have Huntington’s disease or not. Huntington’s Disease cannot be cured. This disease will start showing symptoms in the third or fourth decades of a person’s life. Treatments are used to decrease the symptoms caused by the disease. For example, “Tetrabenazine is the only agents indicated for the treatment of chorea associated with HD (management, 2010, pg 12).” To reduce motor symptoms Olanzapine, quetiapine and risperidone helped. There are many drugs that can be taken to reduce a symptom, but they do not always work and they can sometimes alter another