brain, spinal cord, and nerve disorders
Chorea, Athetosis, and Hemiballismus
Symptoms
Choreatypically involves the hands, feet, and face. The nose may wrinkle, the eyes may continually flit, and the mouth or tongue may continually move. The movements are not rhythmic, but they seem to flow from one muscle to the next and may seem dancelike. The movements may merge imperceptibly into purposeful or semipurposeful acts, sometimes making the chorea hard to identify. Athetosisusually affects the hands and feet. The slow writhing movements often alternate with holding parts of the limbs in certain positions (postures) to produce a continuous, flowing stream of movement. When chorea and athetosis occur together, the movements are writhing, dancelike, and slower than in chorea but faster than in athetosis. Hemiballismusaffects one side of the body. The arm is affected more often than the leg. Hemiballismus may be temporarily disabling because when a person tries to move the limb, it may fling out uncontrollably. 