[Extrapyramidal rigidity with dystonia, optic atrophy and bilateral putaminal lesions in an adolescent. Juvenile form of Leigh's disease (author's transl)].

A 19-year-old man presented with an apparently non-familial neurological disorder that had progressed from the age of 6 years. Dystonia of the trunk and limbs with extrapyramidal rigidity, dysarthria, a pyramidal syndrome with spasticity of the lower limbs, bilateral optic atrophy, and nystagmiform ocular movements were present. CT scan demonstrated symmetrical putaminal lesions. The different aetiologies of bilateral striatal lesions are considered, the final diagnosis being a juvenile form of Leigh's disease.