Neurological Disorders: Alien Hand Syndrome

Synonyms:
 Anarchic hand; Diagnostic dyspraxia;  Intermanual conflict; Magnetic apraxia; Unilateral apraxia; La main etrangere. 

Overview
     Alien hand syndrome  is a rare neurological disorder that causes hand movement without the person being aware of what is happening or having control over the action. The afflicted person may sometimes reach for objects and manipulate them without wanting to do so, even to the point of having to use the healthy hand to restrain the alien hand. A new study identified the areas of the brain involved in both voluntary and involuntary movement and found that neural activity was restricted to the primary motor cortex during the unconscious motor activity seen with AHS. The study will be published online in the official journal of the American Neurological Association.

Restless Legs Syndrome

Background

       Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a neurologic movement disorder of the limbs that is often associated with a sleep complaint ^.Patients with RLS have a characteristic difficulty in trying to depict their symptoms. They may report sensations, such as an almost irresistible urge to move the legs, that are not painful but are distinctly bothersome. RLS can lead to significant physical and emotional disability.

   The sensations of RLS usually are worse during inactivity and often interfere with sleep, leading to chronic sleep deprivation and stress.Once correctly diagnosed, RLS can usually be treated effectively and, in some secondary cases, it can even be cured.
The term RLS was used initially in the mid-1940s by Swedish neurologist Karl A. Ekbom. However, descriptions of the disorder date back to the 17th century.
RLS is often unrecognized or misdiagnosed. Many patients are not diagnosed until 10-20 years after symptom onset. RLS may begin at any age, even as early as infancy, but most patients who are affected severely are middle-aged or older.

What are common signs and symptoms of restless legs?

#Medical Case: 7-year old with Limbs Growing Out of his Chest

           A 7-year-old boy Deepak Kumar Paswaan, who lives in Buxar, Bihar, India, was born with extra arms, legs and buttocks of a parasitic twin protruding from his chest, which looks similar to the Indian man’s extra body.

• This case is similar to how conjoined twins are formed, except there is a malformation of one of those twins.As a result, the twin never fully develops and has caused the boy to live with extra arms and legs.The worst part is, the legs are growing at the same rate as the boy, adding to the weight the boy must carry.
  

• As “usual,” he was worshipped as an incarnation of Lakshmi, the multi-limbed Hindu goddess of wealth and prosperity but there are also people who cast stones to him to driveout the “demon” in his body. 

When Deepak was born with the parasitic twin growing out of his abdomen the doctors in the village warned he wouldn’t have lived for more than a few days. However little Deepak fought through all the odds and survived as a healthy child though he was much behind his peers and led a socially restricted life. The contrasting ways in which he led is life is best exemplified by the fact that Deepak was treated as a religious icon and was worshipped by a set of villagers as God,