Symptoms and Diagnosis of Sneddon Syndrome

Every other person today undergoes regular body checkups for diabetes, high blood pressure, arthritis, etc. But do you know that there is a huge storm of diseases that is being detected in human body every now and then? One of those is Sneddon Syndrome which in medical terms is also known as “Idiopathic livedo reticularis with cerebrovascular accidents”.

Sneddon Syndrome treatment

 

It is an uncommon disease growing swiftly among young adults .It affects the blood vessels in the brain, the eyes, and the heart. It is the combination of livedo racemosa and cerebrovascular events, which affects the arteries and central nervous system.

Background History of this Disease

This disease was first detected by Ian Bruce Sneddon in 1965 when he discovered 6 patients with a different skin rash and occurring history of strokes. It was classified as inflammatory cerebrovascular disease. It is a form of arteriopathy and is very progressive and must be cured instantly. It can also be inherited from autosomal dominant fashion.

Symptoms

The symptoms of this disease are headaches, heart disease, hypertension, vertigo, strokes, seizures, mental deterioration, and dementia. The blood flow to the brain decreases, and bluish net-like platforms appear on the skin. The reason why this disease occurs is still unknown. It also creates difficulties in speech, memory problems, pain in the eyes, numbness on exposure to cold, etc.

Diagnosis

It has been years since we came to know the reason behind this rare disease. It is a degenerative disease, and has no definitive treatment for it as such. Skin biopsy, brain biopsy, blood tests, acupuncture, and MRI tests are conducted to know the intensity of this disease growing in the body. The exact reason behind this disease still stays unknown.

Sneddon Syndrome with livedo reticularis is typically seen in females between the age of 30 and 40. There have been several tests conducted on patients to derive the reason, and for the treatment of this rare disease. And one of the main and dominant symptoms seen was neurological disorder i.e., headaches.

There are no specific tests for Sneddon Syndrome. But there are still researches going on for this rarest-of-all syndrome. But till then skin and brain biopsy are in aide.

Treatment of Sneddon Syndrome

After all these years, doctors have found that one medicine which gives relief to Sneddon patients is Warfarin, an anticoagulant medication which is given with an INR 3-4. Even daily aspirin and low dose heparin can do the work. There are certain surgeries like Tracheostomy, Gall bladder removal and Cervical spine fusion that can prove to be helpful.

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