Brain Donation Information - Mayo Clinic

[Guest guest]

Letter from Dr. Benarroch at Mayo Clinic:

Dear Sir/Madam:

The cause of the disease that is afflicting you, called multiple

system

atrophy or Shy-Drager syndrome, is not known. In other similar

disorders, such as Parkinson's disease, important advances are being

made in the understanding of the mechanisms that trigger the loss of

nerve cells, and these will hopefully lead to treatments that may stop

or at least delay the progression of the disease.

One important clue about the cause and mechanisms of this group of

diseases is provided by the postmortem examination of the brains of

patients who die from these disorders. Over the past four years, we

have been pursuing these studies, funded by the National Institutes of

Health (NIH). We have made some advances, but there are still many

questions that remain to be answered. We would appreciate your

considering donating your brain for our study at the time of death.

Your contribution will help many other patients suffering from this

still incurable disease. If you consent with the brain donation,

please

contact me or one of my co-workers at the Mayo Clinic, Rochester,

Minnesota. The address is:

E. Benarroch, M.D., D.Sci.

Neurophysiology Laboratory

Mayo Clinic

807 Guggenheim Building

200 First Street SW

Rochester, MN 55905

Phone: or

Fax:

E-mail: benarroch.eduardo@...

Many thanks in advance on behalf of many other patients with Shy-

Drager

syndrome.

Sincerely,

E. Benarroch, M.D., D.Sci.