A 45-year-old woman with multiple sclerosis develops scanning speech, intention tremor, and nystagmus. These signs together are known as Charcot's triad and indicate a lesion in which structure?

• A Basal ganglia
• B Prefrontal cortex
• C Dorsal columns
• D Cerebellum ✓

Explanation

Charcot's triad of MS — intention tremor, scanning (staccato) speech, and nystagmus — reflects demyelination within the cerebellar pathways or the cerebellum itself. The cerebellum coordinates smooth voluntary movement, controls eye movement via the fastigial nucleus and vestibular connections, and regulates speech via the cerebellar–thalamo–cortical circuit. Basal ganglia lesions produce resting tremor and bradykinesia (Parkinsonism), not intention tremor or nystagmus.

Reference: BD Chaurasia's Human Anatomy, 8th ed.

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Written and medically reviewed by the StethoPrep medical team.