National Center for Advancing and Translational Sciences Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center, a program of the National Center for Advancing and Translational Sciences

Neuropathy ataxia retinitis pigmentosa syndrome



Neuropathy ataxia retinitis pigmentosa (NARP) syndrome is characterized by a variety of signs and symptoms that mainly affect the nervous system. Beginning in childhood or early adulthood, most people with NARP experience numbness, tingling, or pain in the arms and legs (sensory neuropathy); muscle weakness; and problems with balance and coordination (ataxia). Affected individuals may also have vision loss caused by a condition called retinitis pigmentosa. Other features of NARP include learning disabilities, developmental delay, seizures, dementia, hearing loss, and cardiac conduction defects. Mutations in the MT-ATP6 gene cause NARP syndrome. This gene is located within mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA).[1] Most individuals with NARP have a specific MT-ATP6 mutation in 70 percent to 90 percent of their mitochondria.[2] NARP syndrome is inherited from the mother (maternal inheritance) because only females pass mitochondrial DNA to their children.[1]
Last updated: 1/27/2016

This table lists symptoms that people with this disease may have. For most diseases, symptoms will vary from person to person. People with the same disease may not have all the symptoms listed. This information comes from a database called the Human Phenotype Ontology (HPO) . The HPO collects information on symptoms that have been described in medical resources. The HPO is updated regularly. Use the HPO ID to access more in-depth information about a symptom.

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Medical Terms Other Names
Learn More:
HPO ID
30%-79% of people have these symptoms
Abnormal basal ganglia MRI signal intensity 0012751
Abnormal visual field test 0030588
Babinski sign 0003487
Blindness 0000618
Cerebral cortical atrophy
Decrease in size of the outer layer of the brain due to loss of brain cells
0002120
Constriction of peripheral visual field
Limited peripheral vision
0001133
Corticospinal tract atrophy 0007117
Dementia
Dementia, progressive
Progressive dementia
[ more ]
0000726
Global developmental delay 0001263
Headache
Headaches
0002315
Hearing impairment
Deafness
Hearing defect
[ more ]
0000365
Intellectual disability, severe
Early and severe mental retardation
Mental retardation, severe
Severe mental retardation
[ more ]
0010864
Irritability
Irritable
0000737
Muscle spasm 0003394
Myoclonic spasms 0003739
Nystagmus
Involuntary, rapid, rhythmic eye movements
0000639
Optic disc pallor 0000543
Progressive gait ataxia 0007240
Proximal muscle weakness
Weakness in muscles of upper arms and upper legs
0003701
Retinal arteriolar tortuosity 0001136
Retinal pigment epithelial mottling 0007814
Rod-cone dystrophy 0000510
Seizure 0001250
Sensory neuropathy
Damage to nerves that sense feeling
0000763
Short stature
Decreased body height
Small stature
[ more ]
0004322
Ventriculomegaly 0002119
Percent of people who have these symptoms is not available through HPO
Ataxia 0001251
Mitochondrial inheritance 0001427
Mitochondrial myopathy 0003737
Myopathy
Muscle tissue disease
0003198
Retinopathy
Noninflammatory retina disease
0000488
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Last updated: 7/1/2020

Making a diagnosis for a genetic or rare disease can often be challenging. Healthcare professionals typically look at a person’s medical history, symptoms, physical exam, and laboratory test results in order to make a diagnosis. The following resources provide information relating to diagnosis and testing for this condition. If you have questions about getting a diagnosis, you should contact a healthcare professional.

Testing Resources

  • The Genetic Testing Registry (GTR) provides information about the genetic tests for this condition. The intended audience for the GTR is health care providers and researchers. Patients and consumers with specific questions about a genetic test should contact a health care provider or a genetics professional.
  • Orphanet lists international laboratories offering diagnostic testing for this condition.

If you need medical advice, you can look for doctors or other healthcare professionals who have experience with this disease. You may find these specialists through advocacy organizations, clinical trials, or articles published in medical journals. You may also want to contact a university or tertiary medical center in your area, because these centers tend to see more complex cases and have the latest technology and treatments.

If you can’t find a specialist in your local area, try contacting national or international specialists. They may be able to refer you to someone they know through conferences or research efforts. Some specialists may be willing to consult with you or your local doctors over the phone or by email if you can't travel to them for care.

You can find more tips in our guide, How to Find a Disease Specialist. We also encourage you to explore the rest of this page to find resources that can help you find specialists.

Healthcare Resources


Related diseases are conditions that have similar signs and symptoms. A health care provider may consider these conditions in the table below when making a diagnosis. Please note that the table may not include all the possible conditions related to this disease.

Conditions with similar signs and symptoms from Orphanet
Differential diagnosis includes maternally inherited Leigh syndrome (MILS, like NARP syndrome part of the same group of disorders of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation), Refsum disease, Cockayne syndrome, abetalipoproteinemia, Usher syndrome (see these terms), neurological complication of lipidosis or rare cases of spinocerebellar disorder/ataxia.
Visit the Orphanet disease page for more information.

Research helps us better understand diseases and can lead to advances in diagnosis and treatment. This section provides resources to help you learn about medical research and ways to get involved.

Clinical Research Resources

  • Orphanet lists European clinical trials, research studies, and patient registries enrolling people with this condition. 
  • The North American Mitochondrial Disease Consortium (NAMDC) is a team of doctors, nurses, research coordinators, and research labs throughout the U.S., working together to improve the lives of people with this condition through research.

Support and advocacy groups can help you connect with other patients and families, and they can provide valuable services. Many develop patient-centered information and are the driving force behind research for better treatments and possible cures. They can direct you to research, resources, and services. Many organizations also have experts who serve as medical advisors or provide lists of doctors/clinics. Visit the group’s website or contact them to learn about the services they offer. Inclusion on this list is not an endorsement by GARD.

Organizations Supporting this Disease


These resources provide more information about this condition or associated symptoms. The in-depth resources contain medical and scientific language that may be hard to understand. You may want to review these resources with a medical professional.

Where to Start

  • Genetics Home Reference (GHR) contains information on Neuropathy ataxia retinitis pigmentosa syndrome. This website is maintained by the National Library of Medicine.
  • The National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) has a report for patients and families about this condition. NORD is a patient advocacy organization for individuals with rare diseases and the organizations that serve them.

In-Depth Information

  • GeneReviews provides current, expert-authored, peer-reviewed, full-text articles describing the application of genetic testing to the diagnosis, management, and genetic counseling of patients with specific inherited conditions.
  • The Monarch Initiative brings together data about this condition from humans and other species to help physicians and biomedical researchers. Monarch’s tools are designed to make it easier to compare the signs and symptoms (phenotypes) of different diseases and discover common features. This initiative is a collaboration between several academic institutions across the world and is funded by the National Institutes of Health. Visit the website to explore the biology of this condition.
  • Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM) is a catalog of human genes and genetic disorders. Each entry has a summary of related medical articles. It is meant for health care professionals and researchers. OMIM is maintained by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. 
  • Orphanet is a European reference portal for information on rare diseases and orphan drugs. Access to this database is free of charge.
  • PubMed is a searchable database of medical literature and lists journal articles that discuss Neuropathy ataxia retinitis pigmentosa syndrome. Click on the link to view a sample search on this topic.

Questions sent to GARD may be posted here if the information could be helpful to others. We remove all identifying information when posting a question to protect your privacy. If you do not want your question posted, please let us know. Submit a new question

  • How is neuropathy ataxia retinitis pigmentosa (NARP) related to maternally inherited Leigh syndrome (MILS)? See answer



  1. Neuropathy, ataxia, and retinitis pigmentosa. Genetics Home Reference. November 2006; http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition/neuropathy-ataxia-and-retinitis-pigmentosa.
  2. MT-ATP6. Genetics Home Reference. October 2011; http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/gene/MT-ATP6.