Any of several different factors can lead to a reduction in the volume of a person’s brain tissue, known as cerebral atrophy.

Even in a healthy person, the normal aging process tends to lead to a reduction in brain volume.

On average, every ten years a person’s brain shrinks by 1.9 percent.

This age-related shrinking becomes more profound once the person enters their sixties: starting in that decade, a person may lose one-half to one percent of their brain volume every year due to natural cerebral atrophy causes.

Certain neurodegenerative diseases can cause cerebral atrophy by directly attacking the brain’s tissue.

Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease and other conditions fall into this category.These conditions initially cause focal atrophy in particular parts of the brain, then progress to cause generalized atrophy affecting the whole brain.

Injuries like stroke or traumatic brain injury can cause a degradation of brain tissue by interrupting healthy blood flow to particular parts of the brain.

Infectious diseases can also be cerebral atrophy causes, either by attacking brain tissue directly or by stimulating an excessive inflammatory response.

At least one study shows that excessive alcohol consumption can be among cerebral atrophy causes, finding significant brain shrinkage in persons who drank more than 14 drinks per week.

Studies Suggest Dilantin May Be Among Cerebral Atrophy Causes

While it’s not one of the more frequent cerebral atrophy causes, the anti-convulsant medication Dilantin is believed to be linked to certain cases in which epilepsy patients developed cerebellar atrophy, a type of focal cerebral atrophy.

Since the cerebellum is largely responsible for controlling voluntary muscle movement, this particular type of cerebral atrophy causes difficulty moving. Patients commonly have a hard time walking or maintaining balance.

Published case studies, some from several years back, suggest that long-term use of Dilantin – often referred to by its generic name phenytoin – may lead to cerebellar atrophy. One study documented cerebellar degeneration in five different patients who had been taking phenytoin.

These patients all had high levels of phenytoin in their blood. At the same time, none of them was having seizures of a type that could lead to hypoxia-induced degeneration.

While the researchers acknowledged that hypoxia associated with seizures can cause cerebral atrophy, they proposed that phenytoin itself may also be a cause.

Another such study involved a teenage boy who had been treating his epilepsy with regular doses of phenytoin. After about ten years of phenytoin therapy, he began to exhibit difficulty walking.

An examination by his doctor revealed other cerebellar symptoms such as abnormal movement of his eyes, trunk and limbs. An imaging study of his brain confirmed he was suffering from cerebellar atrophy.

His physicians determined through a causality assessment that his cerebellar atrophy was probably an adverse drug reaction to his long-term phenytoin therapy.

Symptoms of cerebellar atrophy can be considerably disruptive to a patient’s life. They can hamper the person’s ability to maintain balance and get around safely under their own power.

Effects on smaller-scale movements can impair tasks like writing, typing, or putting on clothes. sSmptoms may also degrade the patient’s ability to speak or to swallow food.

These symptoms can negatively affect a patient’s ability to work and earn a living – not to mention their ability to perform the normal, everyday personal tasks required for independent living.