Urinary sediment dolichols in the diagnosis of neuronal ceroid‐lipofuscinosis

Long-chain polyisoprenol alcohol (dolichols) levels are significantly increased in the urinary sediment of patients with infantile, late-infantile, and juvenile forms of neuronal ceroid-lipofuscinosis (NCL). The values in obligate heterozygotes for these diseases are similar to those in patients with other neurological diseases and in healthy controls. Antioxidant treatment of patients with juvenile NCL has no effect on dolichol values. The rate of false-negative results is 13.9% in infantile, 7.5% in late-infantile, and 15.0% in juvenile NCL. False-positive results were found in 8.2 to 14.3% of patients with other neurological diseases and in 15.4% of healthy controls. The test is of considerable value in the diagnosis of NCL and in decisions on whether to perform a biopsy. It is not useful in the screening of random samples, however.