Health Watch

Thursday, February 24, 2005

Doctors diagnosed Nygel Lenz with Friedrich's Ataxia when he was 19-years-old. Ataxia is a degenerative neurological condition that results in loss of muscle coordination.

Ataxia patients often become confined to a wheelchair, develop slurred speech, and have a host of other medical problems like diabetes and enlarged hearts.

The National Ataxia Foundation estimates about 150,000 people in the United States have been diagnosed with the disease. There are several forms of Ataxia, some hereditary and some sporadic.

Now 30, Lenz leads the Tampa Bay Ataxia Support Group. As leader, he wanted to raise awareness of Ataxia in the Tampa Bay Area, so he lobbied the National Ataxia Foundation to hold their annual meeting here, and the group agreed.

The NAF annual meeting is being held this week in Tampa. This is the first time the group has met in the state of Florida.

"We organized probably around 500 or so people with ataxia, their family and friends as well as the doctors and researchers all coming together," said Lenz. "We're going to have breakout meetings on Friday to talk to them about physical therapy, speech therapy because that's an issue, we're gonna have therapeutic horseback riding, genetic information and some others and the general meeting Saturday and Sunday."

Lenz says support groups and the NAF helped him deal with his condition and give him hope that a treatment and a cure are within reach.
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