Diagnosis. If you have ataxia, your doctor will look for a treatable cause. Besides conducting a physical exam and a neurological exam, including checking your vision, balance, coordination and reflexes, your doctor might request tests, including: Blood tests. These might help identify treatable causes of ataxia.

Ataxia is manifested by a wide-based unsteady gait, errors of extremity trajectory or placement, errors in motor sequence or rhythm and/or by dysarthria. Tone is usually decreased and stretch reflexes may be “pendular.”. Nystagmus, skew deviation, disconjugate saccades, and altered ocular pursuit can be present.