Lafora Disease

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Lafora disease, also called Lafora progressive myoclonic epilepsy or MELF , is a fatal autosomal recessive genetic disorder characterized by the presence of inclusion bodies, known as Lafora bodies, within neurons and the cells of the heart, liver, muscle, and skin.:545 Most patients with this disease do not live past the age of twenty-five, and death within ten years of symptoms is usually inevitable At this time there is no cure or treatment for this disease.

Epilepsy occurs in one percent of all humans. Progressive Myoclonic Epilepsies (PME) account for about one percent of all epilepsies.

Lafora disease is one of the common PMEs. Symptoms of Lafora disease begin to manifest themselves in children from 10 to 17 years old.

Males and females are equally affected.