Ocular Motor Apraxia, Cogan Type

Synonyms

• Congenital Oculomotor Apraxia
• oculomotor apraxia, Cogan type
• COMA
• saccade initiation failure, congenital

Disorder Subdivisions

• None

General Discussion

Cogan type ocular motor apraxia is a rare inherited eye disorder that is present at birth (congenital). The disorder is characterized by a defect in side-to-side (horizontal) eye movements, both voluntary and responsive. When affected infants rotate their heads to the side to look at an object, their eyes will lag and then move in the opposite direction. In order to compensate for this, the infants will sharply jerk their heads past the desired object in an effort to bring the eyes to a position where they can view the object. The disorder can also be associated with mild developmental delay and speech difficulties. Symptoms of this disorder usually improve throughout the first and second decades of life. Cogan type ocular motor apraxia is a genetic condition for which the inheritance pattern has not been well established. It is not clear if it is inherited as an autosomal recessive genetic trait or an autosomal dominant genetic trait.

Resources

National Eye Research Foundation
910 Skokie Boulevard
Suite 207A
Northbrook, IL 60062
Tel: (847)564-4652
Fax: (847)564-0807
Tel: (800)621-2258
Email: nerf1955@aol.com
Internet: http://www.nerf.org

NIH/National Eye Institute
Building 31 Rm 6A32
31 Center Dr MSC 2510
Bethesda, MD 20892-2510
United States
Tel: 3014965248
Fax: 3014021065
Email: 2020@nei.nih.gov
Internet: http://www.nei.nih.gov/

Ocular Motor Apraxia Home Page
P.O. Box 999
Cambridge, Intl CB1 4WD
United Kingdom
Tel: +44 1223 775664
Fax: +44 1223 775662
Email: mod.oma@wwweb.org
Internet: http://www.wwweb.org/oma/

For a Complete Report

This is an abstract of a report from the National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc. ® (NORD). A copy of the complete report can be obtained for a small fee by visiting the NORD website. The complete report contains additional information including symptoms, causes, affected population, related disorders, standard and investigational treatments (if available), and references from medical literature. For a full-text version of this topic, see http://www.rarediseases.org/search/rdblist.html

The information provided in this report is not intended for diagnostic purposes. It is provided for informational purposes only. NORD recommends that affected individuals seek the advice or counsel of their own personal physicians.

It is possible that the title of this topic is not the name you selected. Please check the Synonyms listing to find the alternate name(s) and Disorder Subdivision(s) covered by this report.

This disease entry is based upon medical information available through the date at the end of the topic. Since NORD's resources are limited, it is not possible to keep every entry in the Rare Disease Database completely current and accurate. Please check with the agencies listed in the Resources section for the most current information about this disorder.

For additional information and assistance about rare disorders, please contact the National Organization for Rare Disorders at P.O. Box 1968, Danbury, CT 06813-1968; phone (203) 744-0100; web site www.rarediseases.org or email orphan@rarediseases.org

Last Updated: 5/25/2005
Copyright 1996, 1997, 2005 National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc.