Symptoms of Muscular Dystrophy
Symptoms of Muscular Dystrophy
The list of signs and symptoms mentioned in various sources
for Muscular Dystrophy includes the 10
symptoms listed below:
Research symptoms & diagnosis of Muscular Dystrophy:
Muscular Dystrophy: Complications
Review medical complications possibly associated with Muscular Dystrophy:
Muscular Dystrophy Symptoms: Book Excerpts
Diagnostic Testing
Diagnostic testing of medical conditions related to Muscular Dystrophy:
Research More About Muscular Dystrophy
Do I have Muscular Dystrophy?
More about symptoms of Muscular Dystrophy:
More information about symptoms of Muscular Dystrophy and related conditions:
Other Possible Causes of these Symptoms
Click on any of the symptoms below to see a full list
of other causes including diseases, medical conditions, toxins, drug interactions,
or drug side effect causes of that symptom.
Medical Books Online about Muscular Dystrophy
Medical Books Excerpts
Excerpts of published medical book chapters related to Muscular Dystrophy
are available from published medical books
for more detailed information about Muscular Dystrophy.
Copyright notice for book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.
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Symptoms of Muscular Dystrophy: Online Medical Books
16 MEDICAL BOOKS ONLINE!
Review excerpts from medical books online, free, without registration,
for more information about the symptoms of Muscular Dystrophy.
Muscular dystrophy:
Signs and symptoms
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))
Although all four types of muscular dystrophy cause progressive muscular deterioration, the degree of severity and age of onset vary.
Duchenne’s muscular dystrophy begins insidiously, between ages 3 and 5. Initially, it affects leg and pelvic muscles but eventually spreads to the involuntary muscles. Muscle weakness produces a waddling gait, toe walking, and lordosis. Children with this disorder have difficulty climbing stairs, fall down often, can’t run properly, and their scapulae flare out (or “wing”) when they raise their arms. Calf muscles especially become enlarged and firm. Muscle deterioration progresses rapidly, and contractures develop. Some have abrupt intermittent oscillations of the irises in response to light (Gower’s sign). Usually, these children are confined to wheelchairs by ages 9 to 12. Late in the disease, progressive weakening of cardiac muscle causes tachycardia, electrocardiogram abnormalities, and pulmonary complications. Death commonly results from sudden heart failure, respiratory failure, or infection.
Signs and symptoms of Becker’s muscular dystrophy resemble those of Duchenne’s muscular dystrophy, but they progress more slowly. Although symptoms start around age 5, the patient can still walk well beyond age 15 — sometimes into his 40s.
Facioscapulohumeral dystrophy is a slowly progressive and relatively benign form of muscular dystrophy that commonly occurs before age 10 but may develop during early adolescence. Initially, it weakens the muscles of the face, shoulders, and upper arms but eventually spreads to all voluntary muscles, producing a pendulous lower lip and absence of the nasolabial fold. Early symptoms include the inability to pucker the mouth or whistle, abnormal facial movements, and the absence of facial movements when laughing or crying. Other signs consist of diffuse facial flattening that leads to a masklike expression, winging of the scapulae, the inability to raise the arms above the head and, in infants, the inability to suckle.
Limb-girdle dystrophy follows a similarly slow course and commonly causes only slight disability. Usually, it begins between ages 6 and 10; less commonly, in early adulthood. Muscle weakness first appears in the upper arm and pelvic muscles. Other symptoms include winging of the scapulae, lordosis with abdominal protrusion, waddling gait, poor balance, and the inability to raise the arms.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
Muscular Dystrophies:
Muscular Dystrophies - signs & symptoms
(The 5-Minute Pediatric Consult)
DMD:
- Usually presents by age 3–6
- Falls, clumsy gait, lumbar lordosis, trouble climbing stairs, arising from floor
- May have calf pseudohypertrophy
- Elevated creatine kinase (CK) levels: Apparent elevated transaminases (actually muscle origin)
- Cognitive deficits common
- Cardiac involvement
BMD:
- Presents after age 6 up to teen/adult
- Symptoms similar to those of DMD, although milder
- May have discolored urine (myoglobinuria)
- Muscle cramps are common.
- May present with dilated cardiomyopathy
CMD:
- Presents within first few months of life, usually with hypotonia or contractures
- Often with brain involvement
- 10 subtypes: More genes being identified
Subtypes:
- Merosin-deficient CMD (most common CMD):
- Profound weakness
- Nonprogressive, normal life span
- No independent ambulation
- Demyelinating neuropathy → poor peripheral motor nerve conduction
- May have normal cognitive function
- Epilepsy in 20%
- Cardiac involvement unusual
- Ullrich CMD (2nd most common CMD):
- Usually severe
- Slowly progressive
- Loss of ambulation by age 30
- Normal intelligence
- Early proximal contractures, with excessive distal laxity
- Weakness, rigid spine, prominent calcanei
- Collagen VI deficiency in many
- Fukuyama CMD:
- Carrier rate in Japan 1:90
- No ambulation
- >50% unable to speak
- Severe delayed cognitive function
- Frequent cardiac involvemen
- Seizures in 50%
- Walker-Warburg CMD:
- Most severe in group
- Severe hydrocephalus, brain abnormalities
- Severe ocular abnormalities, as above
- Life span usually <3 years
LGMD:
- Onset at any age except 1st months of life
- Currently there are 13 subtypes
- Proximal weakness pelvic → shoulder girdle
Subtypes:
- Sarcoglycanopathies (LGMD):
- Phenotype similar to DMD
- Cognitively normal
- Progressive
- Loss of ambulation by age 20
- May have dilated cardiomyopathy
- FKRP-related proteinopathy (LGMD):
- Phenotype similar to DMD
- Normal cognitive function
- Upper extremity weakness common
- Frequent dilated cardiomyopathy and respiratory failure
- May also cause CMD phenotype
- Calpainopathy:
- Slow progression, loss of walking by age 40
- Mostly atrophic, not dystrophic
- Early contractures
- Normal life expectancy
- Facioscapulohumeral MD:
- Onset by age 20
- Slow progression
- Autosomal dominant
- Weakness/wasting eye, mouth muscles
- Weak shoulders, then truncal, hip
MMD
- Teen or adult onset
- Delayed relaxation after contraction
- Affects mostly face, distal muscles
- Slow progression
- Also may affect GI, vision, cardiac, respiratory systems
- Congenital form more severe
>
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: The 5-Minute Pediatric Consult, 2008
Muscular Dystrophy as a Cause of Symptoms or Medical Conditions
When considering symptoms of Muscular Dystrophy, it is also important to consider Muscular Dystrophy as a possible cause of other medical conditions.
The Disease Database lists the following medical conditions that Muscular Dystrophy may cause:
- (Source - Diseases Database)
Medical articles and books on symptoms:
These general reference articles may be of interest
in relation to medical signs and symptoms of disease in general:
Full list of premium articles on symptoms and diagnosis
About signs and symptoms of Muscular Dystrophy:
The symptom information on this page
attempts to provide a list of some possible signs and symptoms of Muscular Dystrophy.
This signs and symptoms information for Muscular Dystrophy has been gathered from various sources,
may not be fully accurate,
and may not be the full list of Muscular Dystrophy signs or Muscular Dystrophy symptoms.
Furthermore, signs and symptoms of Muscular Dystrophy may vary on an individual basis for each patient.
Only your doctor can provide adequate diagnosis of any signs or symptoms and whether they
are indeed Muscular Dystrophy symptoms.
"I authorize the release of any medical or other information necessary to process this claim." Do you recognize these words? You should, if...
Whenever you go to a hospital or clinic for a major procedure or diagnostic test, one of the many forms you are given to sign is an "informed...
Stress takes its toll by making us anxious, depressed and not able to function as fully as we'd like. What many don't know is that stress can...
Sleep is necessary to feel refreshed, but now we know sleep actually impacts the way the body functions. Sleeping poorly can affect how often you get...
See full list of 4 related videos
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Diagnostic Tests for Muscular Dystrophy
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