Mechanism
The mechanism is complex and poorly understood. During autopsies, neurofibrillary tangles are found in the brain which are practically congruent to the brain of an Alzheimer's patient.
The following is an excerpt from Island of the Colorblind viewing samples of substantia nigra. "Many of the cells are pale and depigmented. There's a lot of glial reaction, and bits of loose pigment. Shifting to a higher power, he saw a huge number of neurofibrillary tangles, densely staining, convoluted masses, harshly evident within the destroyed nerve cells." Looking at other samples of hypothalamus, spinal cord, and cortex, all were full of neurofibrillary tangles. Neurofibrillary degeneration was everywhere. These slides were similar in appearance to those taken from postencephalitic parkinsonism.
These slides were also very similar to the neurofibrillary tangles found in Alzheimer's disease; however, in Alzheimer's, fewer tangles occur, and in a different distribution. This could be a possible clue as to the process of neurodegeneration, but it is still inconclusive.
While neurofibrillary degeneration is a potential cause of the mechanism of lytico-bodig, much is still undiscovered as to what causes the symptoms, the severity, and how the onset of symptoms progresses. Similar symptoms of postencephalitic patients and Alzheimer's patients could account for the similarities in symptoms of lytico and bodig. Some even wonder if lytico-bodig, postencephalitis, and Alzheimer's could possibly be the same disease, a viral one, which could take three different forms.
Age of onset seems to be increasing with no more teenage cases and almost no cases in their twenties. Sometimes, one form of the disease will present itself chiefly in one decade and then another form predominates in the next.
No treatment has been found to cure lytico-bodig. In some cases, L-dopa was given to patients to alleviate some of the symptoms of bodig, but this only gave the patients one or two hours of freedom from the complete paralysis and rigidity of limbs. It seems in the case of the Chamorros, family members are the primary caregivers, and they have accepted those who are ill and provide home care for all those inflicted with lytico-bodig.
Read more about this topic: Lytico-Bodig Disease
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