Batten Disease Treatments

Treatment

There is no known treatment that will stop the progression or effects of Batten disease. Therefore, treatment aims to reduce symptoms.

For patients who have seizures, anticonvulsant medications can be given to help control seizures. In addition, physical and/or occupational therapy can help people continue functioning for a longer period of time.

One experimental therapy is supplementation with vitamins C and E combined with a diet low in vitamin A. This may slow the progression of the disease in children, however, there is no evidence that it will halt the ultimate progression of the disease. Talk to your doctor before trying this therapy.

Very early trials of stem cell treatment for infantile and late infantile disease are now underway. There is hope that these or other forms of gene therapies may have an effect on the progression of Batten and Jansky-Bielschowsky diseases.