CLN3 disease

What it is

A rare neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis characterized by juvenile or protracted juvenile-onset progressive vision loss due to retinal degeneration/retinopathy (which in several patients may precede the onset of neurological symptoms by some years), seizures, progressive cognitive impairment with a precipitous decline to dementia, progressive motor decline with cerebellar, pyramidal and extrapyramidal features. Associated systemic features may include cardiac abnormalities (including conduction abnormalities, ventricular hypertrophy, atrial flutter/fibrillation and symptomatic bradycardia) and autophagic vacuolar myopathy. Seizures in juvenile-onset (also known as the classic form of the disease) patients, develop typically within 2-4 years of the onset of visual deterioration. In protracted form, characterized by combined focal and generalized epilepsy syndrome and progressive neurologic deterioration, seizures and other neurological manifestations appear significantly later compared to classic form and symptoms are milder. This is the most common form of ceroid lipofuscinosis and is widespread across Western countries.

Key facts

Prevalence

<1 / 1 000 000

Age of onset

Infancy

Inheritance

Autosomal recessive

Classified as

Disease

Prevalence figures describe populations, not individuals, and are often estimates from a single study. Where the figure is an incidence or a birth prevalence, it says so.

Genes reported in subtypes

Orphanet records this gene on 2 more specific entries under this disorder, not on this entry itself:

A well-studied disease is usually split into subtypes, and the gene is curated on whichever one the evidence belongs to. Open a subtype to see which gene goes with it.

ICD-10 codes

ICD-10 has no distinct code for most rare diseases, so many are filed under the nearest available one. A shared code identifies the group, not this disease — the ORPHAcode above is what identifies it.

Related health topics

Reached through the ICD-10 categories this disease is filed under, so these describe the broader group rather than this disease specifically.

Cross-references