What is Adrenoleukodystrophy?
Science has made considerable progress but nature and human anatomy always throws new challenges to the contemporary human tools to pursue even further deep into the infinite knowledge of the universe. In 1993 the human visionaries were struck again by a new category of human illness of the brain called Adrenoleukodystrophy. This disease has given new hurdles for the scientists to enhance their research in the field of genetics.
Adrenoleukodystrophy, as the name suggests, is a disease that is marked by the degeneration of the adrenal glands; responsible for metabolism of the body and suppression of inflammatory reactions in the body. It also facilitates the excretion of salts in the urine, maintains blood pressure in the body and facilitates blood supply to our muscles and brain; in brief it frames an essential part in the immune system of the body.
Unlike meningitis the disease is marked by loss of myelin sheath surrounding nerve cells in the brain, the fatty layer which acts as an insulator between the neurons and the brain, gradually resulting in the degeneration of adrenal glands, disabling the functions managed by the gland in the optimisation of human body.
A number of diseases are genetic but like all genes on the human X and Y chromosomes are different, the disease also marks different hosts and carriers, in this case the carriers are female and the hosts are male. In a layman language, men are mostly affected by this disease in comparison to female. A similar comparison can be done with the occurrence of baldness gene in humans where women are rarely affected while men are generally affected. In brief its occurrence will only be visualized in women when the gene on both the XX of the chromosomes are present rather than just single X while the case is reverse in men with single X in XY chromosome.
The disease can occur in any individual either having the similar problem in their genes or not as some times the gene responsible is in its dormant state. It can grasp a new born infant, a young child of 10 years old or a healthy person of 30 years of age. But one thing is for sure that the person suffering from this disease lives for approximately 10 years from the onset of this disease.
Sometimes we generally ignore the poor performance, retention abilities and eating habits of our children in their classroom, we also pay no heed to why all of a sudden he has become so aggressive or withdrawn; blaming it on puberty and the chemical changes in the body we sit quietly and follow the routine. However, it can be really appalling as these symptoms represent the onset of Adrenoleukodystrophy. Even at a later stage of adulthood if you are met with the similar abnormalities be sure to get medical advice as in the absence of it you can suffer from paralysis and stiffness of your body parts; do not make a mistake of assuming it to be an epileptic seizure as you can never guess what fate has in store for you and when the dormant gene pops its head like a burning volcano. Constant reporting of heart ailments and perspirations may not be just simple blood pressure, but can be a part of the bigger picture that is Adrenoleukodystrophy, for which your body is sincerely giving alarming signals from within, that you are unaware of.
Unfortunately like A.I.D.S. it has no permanent cure and the remedies are only based on symptoms, moral support and proper counseling. Physiotherapist might be required for those who are suffering from a paralytic attack or even special ability classes or schools are required for speech improvisations both for infants and grown ups. Social acceptance by the family friends and neighbors is of utmost importance as the patient generally looses his memory and refuses to admit to its abnormality, absence of social acceptance and support might lead the patient to acute state of depression or expression of aggressiveness towards society. Social acceptance becomes of paramount importance in cases where an infant is born with this disease having characteristic facial deformities and biased immune system.
Adrenoleukodystrophy patients require our love and care, they are people who could not choose their destiny and have no hand in their existing circumstances and they are simply unfortunate destiny children who need to be handled tenderly.
