What happens to muscles during muscular dystrophy?

Muscular dystrophy is a group of diseases that cause progressive weakness and loss of muscle mass. In muscular dystrophy, abnormal genes (mutations) interfere with the production of proteins needed to form healthy muscle. There are many kinds of muscular dystrophy.

What tissues are affected by Duchenne muscular dystrophy?

In the early stages, DMD affects the shoulder and upper arm muscles and the muscles of the hips and thighs. These weaknesses lead to difficulty in rising from the floor, climbing stairs, maintaining balance and raising the arms.

What tissue is affected in muscular dystrophy?

Muscular dystrophy refers to a group of more than 30 inherited (genetic) diseases that cause muscle weakness. These conditions are a type of myopathy, a disease of the skeletal muscles. Over time, muscles shrink and become weaker, affecting your ability to walk and perform daily activities like brushing your teeth.

What happens to the muscles in Duchenne muscular dystrophy?

In DMD, the gene changes cause your child’s body to make very little or no dystrophin. Without enough dystrophin, the muscle cells become leaky and die. This causes the muscles to weaken. If the gene can still make some dystrophin, the condition has milder symptoms.

How does Duchenne muscular dystrophy affect the skeletal system?

Although it seems likely that the loss of muscle tension that occurs in DMD is a cause of poor bone quality, decreased BMD and osteopenia or osteoporosis, there are other pathophysiological effects of DMD that are also likely to contribute significantly to the deterioration of bone health or the failure of adequate …

Is muscular dystrophy a connective tissue disease?

Mixed connective tissue disease (MCTD), also called the Sharp syndrome: A condition that has some, but not all, features of various connective tissue diseases, such as SLE, scleroderma, and polymyositis. MCTD may also have features of Raynaud’s syndrome.

Does Duchenne muscular dystrophy affect smooth muscle?

DMD is a multi-systemic disease because affects skeletal muscle, heart, brain and smooth muscles, due to expression of dystrophin in these organs [4].

Why are calves enlarged in Duchenne muscular dystrophy?

It is also common for boys with DMD to have enlarged calves. This is due to scar tissue build-up in muscles, and muscle tissue being replaced by fat and connective tissue. Once boys with DMD do begin to walk, their movements may seem awkward. And they may walk on their toes or have a waddle-like gait.

How does muscular dystrophy affect the bones?

Duchenne muscular dystrophy is associated with an increased risk of bone fragility due to the adverse effects of prolonged glucocorticoid therapy and progressive muscle weakness on bone strength.

What is muscle tissue disease?

Muscular dystrophy is a group of inherited diseases characterized by weakness and wasting away of muscle tissue, with or without the breakdown of nerve tissue. There are 9 types of muscular dystrophy, with each type involving an eventual loss of strength, increasing disability, and possible deformity.

Is dystrophin in smooth muscle?

Dystrophin is also present in smooth muscle where it provides a strong link between ECM and actin cytoskeleton.