Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, known also as Hereditary Motor and Sensory Neuropathy (HMSN) or Peroneal Muscular Atrophy, is a heterogeneous inherited disorder of nerves (neuropathy) that is characterized by loss of muscle tissue and touch sensation, predominantly in the feet and legs but also in the hands and arms in the advanced stages of disease. Though presently incurable, this disease is one of the most common inherited neurological disorders, with 36 in 100,000 affected Krajewski, K.M., Lewis, R.A., Fuerst, D.R., Turansky, C., Hinderer, S.R., Gerbern, J., Kamholz, J. and M.E. Shy (2000) Brain 123:1516-1527 http://brain.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/123/7/1516#SEC4, accessed 060220.