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Friedreich's Ataxia Frequency in a Large Cohort of Genetically Undetermined Ataxia Patients

Brown, AF; Parkinson, MH; Garcia-Moreno, H; Mudanohwo, E; Labrum, R; Sweeney, M; Giunti, P; (2021) Friedreich's Ataxia Frequency in a Large Cohort of Genetically Undetermined Ataxia Patients. Frontiers in Neurology , 12 , Article 736253. 10.3389/fneur.2021.736253. Green open access

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Abstract

Background: Patients with suspected genetic ataxia are often tested for Friedreich's ataxia (FRDA) and/or a variety of spinocerebellar ataxias (SCAs). FRDA can present with atypical, late-onset forms and so may be missed in the diagnostic process. We aimed to determine FRDA-positive subjects among two cohorts of patients referred to a specialist ataxia centre either for FRDA or SCA testing to determine the proportion of FRDA cases missed in the diagnostic screening process. Methods: 2000 SCA-negative ataxia patients, not previously referred for FRDA testing (group A), were tested for FRDA expansions and mutations. This group was compared with 1768 ataxia patients who had been previously referred for FRDA testing (group B) and were therefore more likely to have a typical presentation. The phenotypes of positive cases were assessed through review of the clinical case notes. Results: Three patients (0.2%) in group A had the FRDA expansion on both alleles, compared with 207 patients (11.7%) in group B. The heterozygous carrier rate across both cohorts was of 41 out of 3,768 cases (1.1%). The size of the expansions in the three FRDA-positive cases in group A was small, and their presentation atypical with late-onset. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that FRDA is very rare among patients who were referred purely for SCA testing without the clinical suspicion of FRDA. Such cases should be referred to specialist ataxia centres for more extensive testing to improve patient management and outcomes.

Type: Article
Title: Friedreich's Ataxia Frequency in a Large Cohort of Genetically Undetermined Ataxia Patients
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2021.736253
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.3389/fneur.2021.736253
Language: English
Additional information: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third-party material in this article are included in the Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Keywords: Friedreich’s ataxia, molecular diagnostics, GAA expansion, triplet-primed PCR, long range PCR
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology > Clinical and Movement Neurosciences
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10141406
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