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Keun-Hwa Jung, MD; Tae-Beom Ahn, MD; Beom S. Jeon, MD, PhD

Arch Neurol. 2005;62:1628-1631.

Background  Recognition of Wilson disease (WD) is sometimes difficult because of its diverse manifestations. Peripheral neuropathy is rarely reported in the context of WD.

Objective  To report an unusual patient with WD whose initial manifestation was peripheral neuropathy.

Design  Case report.

Setting  Neurology department in a tertiary referral center.

Method  Personal observation.

Result  A 17-year-old man, who was eventually diagnosed with WD, was initially seen with polyneuropathy at least 6 months prior to developing more typical symptoms of WD. Electrophysiological and pathological studies suggested a neuropathy of mixed type. Treatment for WD resulted in clinical and electrophysiological improvement.

Conclusion  Wilson disease may initially appear as a treatable polyneuropathy.

Author Affiliations: Department of Neurology and Clinical Research Institute, Seoul National University Hospital (Drs Jung and Jeon), Kyung Hee University Hospital (Dr Ahn), Seoul, South Korea.