The Schellong test and ECG R-R interval test were performed along with other otoneurological examinations in 33 patients with spinocerebellar degeneration and five with Shy-Drager syndrome.
Of the 33 patients 21 (63.3 %) had a positive Schellong test, 8 (44.4%) a positive static R-R interval test and 15 (83.3%) a positive dynamic R-R interval test. In our series abnormalities were observed in patients not only with OPCA, which is supposed to have a pathological relationship to Shy-Drager syndrome, but also in those with LCCA or miscellaneous type. There was a higher incidence of blood pressure and heart rate dysautonomia than difficulty in micturition. Patients with Shy-Drager syndrome had severe dysautonomia in each evaluation.
There was no significant relationship between the results of dysautonomia and smooth pursuit and FFS (failure of fixation suppression) which showed great variations of degeneration of neural systems in each case. Only a few patients with dysautonomia complained of dizziness and black-out sensation. This is supposed to be one of the characteristics differences from Shy-Drager syndrome.
The Schellong test and the computer-analyzed ECG R-R interval test are of great importance in evaluating the clinical features.
