Huntington's Disease Glossary

Mild eyebrow elevation, grimacing, intermittent frontalis muscle contractions

Eyebrow elevation, intermittent excessive blinking, "winking," intermittent frontalis muscle contraction

Continuous movement of facial muscles with lateral movements of mouth, frequent and irregular excessive blinking, eyebrow elevation, low face grimacing

Mild lip pursing, grimacing, tongue protrusion, attempt to mask chorea as voluntary movements licking lips

Constant lip smacking, lip pursing, grimacing

Constant opening and closing of jaw with associated lip pursing, lip smacking, frequent tongue protrusion

Slow, irregular truncal sway

Constant, irregular, sudden, jerky movements of trunk, serpent-like movements of neck

Severe and constant truncal sway and titubation, choreoathetoid movements (worm-like) to the shoulders, trunk, and neck. Several sudden jerky movements of the trunk.

Frequent distal (fidgety movements of the fingers) and subtle proximal (upper arms) movements

Upper extremity chorea, constant piano playing finger movements, inability to sustain outstretched arms, attempt to mask chorea as voluntary movements, intermittent proximal shoulder movements

Constant, irregular fingers, arms and shoulder high amplitude movements, attempt to mask chorea as voluntary movements

Mild distal choreiform movements to bilateral lower extremities, flexion/extension and lateral deviation of both feet

Constant distal flexion/extension and inversion of foot, fanning of toes, infrequent sudden proximal movements

Irregular sudden, multidirectional high amplitude movement of the feet, lower and upper leg, resulting in frequent flexion-extension of both legs

Foot inversion, slightly irregular steps, wider-based and unsteady on turn

Wide based gait, irregular step, intermittent hesitation of the steps and bouncing. Truncal and arm chorea contributes to unsteadiness

Wide-based bouncing gait, irregular steps, truncal sway, knees buckling, with upper extremity and truncal chorea contributing to unsteadiness