[MRI pathology of the globus pallidus in a patient with oculogyric crisis and tremor].

A 24-year-old woman developed occasional attacks of oculogyric crisis at the age of 18. She also suffered from postural tremor, dystonic gait, pyramidal tract signs, and peripheral nerve damages. No history of encephalitis was elicited. Nerve conduction velocity revealed decreased velocity and amplitude. Needle electromyography showed a neurogenic pattern. Sural nerve biopsy showed marked Wallerian degenerations. Muscle biopsy revealed small grouped atrophies. It was unlikely that she suffered from juvenile Parkinsonism, and we failed to obtain an evidence of neuronal intranuclear inclusion disease. Recently, Furumoto et al. reported a similar case who developed oculogyric crisis at the age of 12. So far, some authors have reported about changes of MRI image in the putamen and the substantia nigra in extrapyramidal movement disorders. However, few have paid attention to the changes of the pallidum. The most characteristic finding in the present case was the restoration of signal intensity of the globus pallidus on T2 weighted high-field MRI. It is known that pallidal damages produce dystonic disorders. However, the exact role which the pallidum played in pathogenesis of our patient's signs and symptoms is unknown at now.