While collectively uncommon, the clinical presentation of genetically-mediated spinal cord disorders frequently overlaps with other neurologic conditions. Our understanding of these disorders has grown considerably. In this episode, Kait Nevel, MD, speaks with Kara Stavros, MD, FAAN, author of the article “Genetic Myelopathies,” in the Continuum February 2024 Spinal Cord Disorders issue. Dr. Nevel is a Continuum® Audio interviewer and a neurologist and neuro-oncologist at Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis, Indiana. Dr. Stavros is an associate professor of neurology and clinician educator at Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. Additional Resources Read the article: Genetic Myelopathies Subscribe to Continuum: shop.lww.com/Continuum Earn CME (available only to AAN members): continpub.com/AudioCME Continuum® Aloud (verbatim audio-book style recordings of articles available only to Continuum® subscribers): continpub.com/Aloud More about the American Academy of Neurology: aan.com Social Media facebook.com/continuumcme @ContinuumAAN Host: @IUneurodocmom Guest: @StavrosKara Transcript  Full transcript available on Libsyn Dr Jones: This is Dr. Lyell Jones, Editor-in-Chief of Continuum, the premier topic-based neurology clinical review and CME journal, from the American Academy of Neurology. Thank you for joining us on Continuum Audio, a companion podcast of the journal. Continuum Audio features conversations with the guest editors and authors of Continuum, who are the leading experts in their fields. Subscribers to the Continuum journal can read the full article or listen to verbatim recordings of the article by clicking on the link in the show notes. Subscribers also have access to exclusive audio content not featured on the podcast. As an ad-free journal entirely supported by subscriptions, if you’re not already a subscriber, we encourage you to become one. For more information on subscribing, please visit the link in the episode notes. AAN members, stay tuned after the episode to hear how you can get CME for listening. Dr Nevel: This is Dr Kait Nevel. Today, I'm interviewing Dr Kara Stavros on genetic myelopathies, which is part of the February 2024 Continuum issue on spinal cord disorders. Dr Stavros is an Associate Professor of Neurology and Clinician Educator at Warren Alpert Medical School at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. Welcome to the podcast. What is the biggest takeaway from your article that you'd like the neurologists listening to this to know? Dr Stavros: I would have to say that there's maybe two big takeaways that I would want to highlight. One would be that, generally speaking, in a nutshell, the genetic myelopathies can present with chronic and progressive symptoms, oftentimes (but not always) a family history of similar symptoms, and involvement of other structures outside of the spinal cord. Exclusion of the more treatable causes of myelopathy is a really key and important step in the diagnostic process. And because there are many different causes of genetic myelopathies, in some cases, the symptoms can overlap. I think this really underscores the utility of doing genetic testing to really confirm the precise underlying neurologic condition. The second takeaway that I would want to highlight is that, while treatment for most of these conditions is typically supportive, there have been a number of recent therapeutic breakthroughs for treatments in ALS, spinal muscular atrophy, adrenal myeloneuropathy, and Friedreich ataxia. While these aren't cures, it's really exciting and gratifying to see new therapeutics emerge via different mechanisms for patients with conditions that we've had very little treatment options for in the past. Dr Nevel: Yeah, I really enjoyed reading that in your article - about these treatments that have been coming out over the past several years. The one with Friedreich’