title: Use of vitamin E for prevention and treatment of spinocerebellar disorders.
abstract: Evidence has accumulated that vitamin E is essential for normal neurological function. It is a fat-soluble vitamin, and, therefore, deficiency states are most likely to occur in patients with fat malabsorption. If such patients have low serum vitamin E concentrations, it is important to initiate appropriate vitamin E therapy with the aim of restoring and maintaining normal serum vitamin E concentrations and preventing long-term neurological disability. This is likely to become a more frequent problem with the increasing survival of patients with chronic fat malabsorptive states. As a corollary, it would also seem reasonable to measure serum vitamin E concentrations in all patients with spinocerebellar disorders, whatever the supposed cause.
mesh_terms: D000012:Abetalipoproteinemia / Q000150:complications; D001647:Bile Acids and Salts / Q000032:analysis; D002526:Cerebellar Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004764:Enterohepatic Circulation; D006801:Humans; D007422:Intestines / Q000032:analysis; D008286:Malabsorption Syndromes / Q000150:complications; D009434:Neural Pathways; D013118:Spinal Cord Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy*; D014810:Vitamin E / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D014811:Vitamin E Deficiency / Q000209:etiology
chemical_list: D001647:Bile Acids and Salts; D014810:Vitamin E