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Klinefelter syndrome and neurological disease

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Summary

Six patients with Klinefelter syndrome (47,XXY) and different neurological disease are described. Essential tremor has been reported repeatedly but its significance deserves further studies. The prevalence of epilepsy with the Klinefelter syndrome is higher in comparison with the normal population, but it is not greater than expected in the population of a mental hospital. Therefore we suggest that the neurological symptoms with the Klinefelter syndrome should basically be regarded as coincidental findings not related to the chromosome abnormality.

Zusammenfassung

Es werden 6 Fälle von Klinefelter-Syndrom (47,XXY) mit unterschiedlicher neurologischer Symptomatik beschrieben. Auffallend ist zwar die wiederholte Beschreibung eines essentiellen Tremors, dessen Signifikanz aber weiterer Untersuchungen bedarf. Die Epilepsiehäufigkeit bei Klinefelter-Syndrom ist aufgrund der Literatur wohl etwas höher als in der Durchschnittsbevölkerung, sie ist aber nicht größer als in Kollektiven von psychiatrischen Kliniken. Wir glauben daher, daß bei diesem Syndrom neurologische Störungen grundsätzlich nicht auf die Chromosomenaberration zurückgeführt, sondern als unabhängig gewertet und untersucht werden sollten.

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Boltshauser, E., Meyer, M. & Deonna, T. Klinefelter syndrome and neurological disease. J. Neurol. 219, 253–259 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00312978

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