disorder (Gusella, 1991, p. 125). However, while this understanding has revealed various aspects of HD's neuropathology and neurochemistry, it has yet to either identify the underlying biochemical defect or provide a cure (Gusella, 1991, p. 131).
The known history of HD goes back several centuries. Originally, called "Huntington's chorea," the characteristic choreiform movement disorder is one of the disease's most conspicuous manifestations (Gusella, 1991, p. 126).
It was, perhaps, these sorts of symptoms that resulted in the term "chorea." "Chorea" can be traced to the Latin "choreus" (LaCour, 1990, p. 16). The word, choreus, means dancing. In addition, "chorea" is very similar to the Greek, "chorus," which means chorus. From one or the other of these roots, Paracelsus arrived at "chorea" in the 16th century (LaCour, 1990, p. 16).
Initially, chorea was used to describe a hysterical mania that swept through Europe after the plague. Historical accounts describe people in a state of wild delirium,
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