title: Primary dystonia misinterpreted as Parkinson disease: Video case presentation and practical clues.
abstract: Diagnosing dystonia can be challenging and depends on the recognition of subtle clinical signs. Due to clinical heterogeneity, variable age at presentation, and overlapping features with other disorders, dystonia is under-recognized. The presence of dystonic tremor is often a reason for misdiagnosis. We report an illustrative case of a patient withDYT1dystonia who was originally misdiagnosed with Parkinson disease. Careful physical examination and history-taking can reveal dystonia and prompt appropriate diagnostic studies, which, in turn, can lead to potentially life-changing treatment. Our report illustrates typical challenges in the recognition and diagnosis of dystonia, and serves to increase clinicians' awareness of this disabling, but treatable, condition.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Colorado, Denver.
authors.forename: Olga
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Klepitskaya
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Colorado, Denver.
authors.forename: Alexander J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Neuwelt
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Colorado, Denver.
authors.forename: Tam
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Colorado, Denver.
authors.forename: Maureen
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Leehey