Cerebellar Disorders

Summary

When you play the piano or hit a tennis ball you are activating the cerebellum. The cerebellum is the area of the brain that controls coordination and balance. Problems with the cerebellum include:

• Cancer
• Genetic disorders
• Ataxias – failure of muscle control in the arms and legs that result in movement disorders
• Degeneration – disorders caused by brain cells decreasing in size or wasting away

Treatment of cerebellar disorders depends on the cause. In some cases, there is no cure but treatment may help with symptoms.

NIH: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

Patient Handouts

• Acute cerebellar ataxia Medical Encyclopedia
• Olivopontocerebellar atrophy Medical Encyclopedia

Genetics

• Ataxia with oculomotor apraxia: MedlinePlus Genetics National Library of Medicine
• Ataxia-pancytopenia syndrome: MedlinePlus Genetics National Library of Medicine
• Autosomal recessive cerebellar ataxia type 1: MedlinePlus Genetics National Library of Medicine
• Episodic ataxia: MedlinePlus Genetics National Library of Medicine
• Gordon Holmes syndrome: MedlinePlus Genetics National Library of Medicine
• Infantile-onset spinocerebellar ataxia: MedlinePlus Genetics National Library of Medicine
• Myoclonic epilepsy myopathy sensory ataxia: MedlinePlus Genetics National Library of Medicine
• Neuropathy, ataxia, and retinitis pigmentosa: MedlinePlus Genetics National Library of Medicine
• Pontocerebellar hypoplasia: MedlinePlus Genetics National Library of Medicine
• Spinocerebellar ataxia type 1: MedlinePlus Genetics National Library of Medicine
• Spinocerebellar ataxia type 2: MedlinePlus Genetics National Library of Medicine
• Spinocerebellar ataxia type 3: MedlinePlus Genetics National Library of Medicine
• Spinocerebellar ataxia type 6: MedlinePlus Genetics National Library of Medicine
• VLDLR-associated cerebellar hypoplasia: MedlinePlus Genetics National Library of Medicine

Start Here

• Ataxias and Cerebellar or Spinocerebellar Degeneration National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

Specifics

• Cerebellar Degeneration National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
• Cerebellar Hypoplasia National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
• Dandy-Walker Syndrome National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
• Dyssynergia Cerebellaris Myoclonica National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
• Joubert Syndrome National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
• Miller Fisher Syndrome National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
• Paraneoplastic Syndromes National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
• Spinocerebellar Ataxias Including Machado-Joseph Disease National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Ataxia National Institutes of Health
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Cerebellar Diseases National Institutes of Health

Diagnosis and Tests

• Computed Tomography (CT) — Head Radiological Society of North America
• Electromyography (EMG) and Nerve Conduction Studies National Library of Medicine
• Head MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) Radiological Society of North America

Find an Expert

• National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

Journal Articles

• Cerebellar Disorders