Serum arylsulfatase A assay in metachromatic leukodystrophy: An experience in a neuropsychiatric set-up

Metachromatic leukodystrophy is a lysosomal disease caused mainly by a deficiency of the enzyme arylsulfatase A. The assay of arylsulfatase A in the serum provides a fast and easy method for the confirmatory diagnosis of this disorder. Serum arylsulfatase A was estimated in 52 normal healthy control subjects and 269 patients with symptoms of cerebral white matter disease in order to diagnose and confirm metachromatic leukodystrophy. A total of eight cases of metachromatic leukodystrophy with a low serum arylsulfatase A was detected, of which three cases were of the late-infantile type, four cases the juvenile type and only one case the adult type.