Adult polyglucosan body disease

Adult polyglucosan body disease (APBD) is a condition that affects the nervous system. People with APBD typically first experience signs and symptoms related to the condition between ages 35 and 60. Initial symptoms of the disorder include numbness and tingling in the legs (peripheral neuropathy) and progressive muscle weakness and stiffness (spasticity). As a result, affected individuals can have an unsteady gait, poor balance, and an increased risk of falling.

Damage to the nerves that control bladder function, a condition called neurogenic bladder, is another feature that often occurs early in the course of APBD. Affected individuals have increasing difficulty starting or stopping the flow of urine.

Eventually, most people with APBD lose the ability to control their bladder and bowel functions and their limbs. Damage to the autonomic nervous system, which controls body functions that are mostly involuntary, leads to problems with blood pressure, heart rate, breathing rate, digestion, temperature regulation, and sexual response, and results in daily bouts of exhaustion. About half of people with APBD experience a decline in intellectual function (dementia).