Initial and Later Symptoms of Muscular Dystrophy

When the body cannot produce the protein called Dystrophin, the condition may lead to a severe muscular damage and weakness. The prevalence of this deficiency has increased significantly, with number of people noted to be affected with this problem, which is found to be further weakening the chief muscular functions of body, resulting into muscular dystrophy. Furthermore, depending upon the extent of damage and the location affected, muscular dystrophy can be categorized into many different types, holding several different symptoms, such as damaged as well as weakened muscles, problems in walking, swallowing, muscular coordination, etc. Till now, more than 30 different types of muscular

Unfortunately, there is no permanent cure or effective way to fulfill the requirement of dystrophin, as of now the only available treatment modalities for the same can be noted as physiotherapy and implementation of some supportive equipment, such as braces, wheelchair, etc. However, certain treatment like stem cell therapy is quite helpful to an extent to improve the quality of life by reducing overall dependability, stopping the disease progression and attaining symptomatic relief from the problem.

Different types of muscular dystrophies can be noted as:

Duchene muscular dystrophy: This is the common type of muscular dystrophy. Generally, boys are more affected rather than girls. Although this disease is actually inherited, about one-third of boys with Duchene muscular dystrophy don't have a family history of the disease, possibly because the gene involved may be subjected to sudden abnormal change or mutation as a result of external and internal factors.

Signs and symptoms that can be relevant to the DMD may include:

•    Frequent falls

•    Difficulty getting up from a lying or sitting position

•    Trouble running and jumping

•    Waddling gait

•    Walking on the toes

•    Large calf muscles

•    Muscle pain and stiffness

•    Learning disabilities

Becker muscular dystrophy: While, signs, and symptoms are similar to those of Duchenne muscular dystrophy; the disability can be linked with milder outcomes along with relatively slower progression of disability. The symptoms generally start to be expressive during the teenage, but are usually noted by the mid 20’s.

Limb-girdle Dystrophy: In this type of muscular dystrophy, hip and shoulder muscles are usually affected. People with this type of muscular dystrophy may have difficulty lifting the front part of the foot and so may jaunt frequently. Its onset usually begins in the childhood or the teenage.

Myotonic Dystrophy is also known as Steinert’s disease, and is identified as the most common form of muscular dystrophy in adults. It affects both men as well as female equally and the symptoms are generally expressed any time between early childhoods to adulthood till 40’s. The symptoms can be related to the myotonia, causing abnormally prolonged spasm and/or stiffening of the muscles after use. The disease may as well affect the central nervous system, heart, gastrointestinal tract, etc.

Although, daily living is not affected, those with Myotonic dystrophy have decreased life expectancy.

Facioscapulohumeral Dystrophy (FSHD):  The kind of muscular dystrophy is linked with the facial muscles, muscles of the shoulder blades, and upper arm bones. This kind of muscular dystrophy is expressive during teenage to early adulthood, affecting both males as well as females equally. The severity of the disease can be mild to complete disabling, affecting the ability to chew, swallow, and speech.