Ataxia telangiectasia: a review

DEFINITION OF THE DISEASE: Ataxia telangiectasia (A-T) is an autosomal recessive disorder primarily characterized by cerebellar degeneration, telangiectasia, immunodeficiency, cancer susceptibility and radiation sensitivity. A-T is often referred to as a genome instability or DNA damage response syndrome. EPIDEMIOLOGY: The world-wide prevalence of A-T is estimated to be between 1 in 40,000 and 1 in 100,000 live births. CLINICAL DESCRIPTION: A-T is a complex disorder with substantial variability in the severity of features between affected individuals, and at different ages. Neurological symptoms most often first appear in early childhood when children begin to sit or walk. They have immunological abnormalities…

• TA
  Tel Aviv University
• NC
  NIH Clinical Center