"As the disease progressed, I got tragically worse. I felt that I was dying piece by piece, a little more each day. I gradually lost my vision to the point where I could no longer read. Reading had been the one thing which I had assumed I would be able to do forever. I felt devastated because reading was an important part of my life. "-David Sanborn
Adrenoleukodystrophy does not only effect vision. Life is made hard by many symptoms that cause a person to be bedridden including :
Changes in muscle tone, especially muscle spasms and spasticity
Crossed eyes (strabismus)
Decreased understanding of verbal communication (aphasia)
Deterioration of handwriting
Difficulty at school
Difficulty understanding spoken material
Hearing loss
Hyperactivity
Worsening nervous system deterioration
Coma
Decreased fine motor control
Paralysis
Seizures
Swallowing difficulties
Difficulty controlling urination
Possible worsening muscle weakness or leg stiffness
Problems with thinking speed and visual memory
Decreased appetite
Increased skin color (pigmentation)
Loss of weight, muscle mass (wasting)
Muscle weakness
Vomiting
http://frank.mtsu.edu/~jsanborn/dslwl.htm
http://health.nytimes.com/health/guides/disease/adrenoleukodystrophy/overview.html
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