Muscular Dystrophy

Muscular dystrophy (MD) a genetic disorder of the muscles that gradually weakens the body’s muscles. It’s caused by incorrect as missing genetic information that prevents the body from making the proteins needed to build and maintain healthy muscles.

A muscular dystrophy is distinguished from all other neuromuscular disease by 4 obligatory criteria. It is a primary myopathy, it has genetic basis, the course is progressive and degeneration and death of muscle fibres occurs at some stage in the disease. Muscular dystrophy are a group of unrelated diseases, each transmitted by a different genetic trait and each difference in its clinical course and expression.

A child who is diagnosed with Muscular dystrophy gradually loses the ability to do things like walk, sit upright, breath easily, move the arms and hand. This increasing weakness can lead the other health problems.

There are several major forms of Muscular dystrophy which can affect the muscles to varing degree. In some cases, muscular dystrophy starts causing muscle problems in infancy. In the symptoms don’t appear until adulthood. Children who are born with muscular dystrophy usually develop normally for the first few years of the life. They may suddenly show signs of calmness. These signs are trouble in walking, difficulty in rising the front of their foot, falling, stumble, waddle have difficulty going up the stairs and walk, because the disease can also affect muscles in the heart and lungs. Shortness of breath, and abnormal heart Rhythms can occur.

There are several different types of Muscular dystrophy. Muscle weakness is a Hallmark of each type. But the symptoms can vary and starts at different ages. Some muscular dystrophy are mild other are more severe and cause life threatening muscle weakness.

Types of Muscular dystrophys

The different types of Muscular dystrophy affect different sets of muscles and cause liftent degree of muscle weakness.

Types are-

  1. Duchenne muscular dystrophy
  1. Bekes muscular dystrophy
  1. myotonic muscular dystrophy
  1. Limb girdle Muscular dystrophy
  1. Fasioscaplo humeral muscular dystrophy
  1. Congenital Muscular dystrophy
  1. Ocalophgryngeal muscular dystrophy
  1. Distact muscular dystrophy
  1. Emery dreitess muscular dystrophy
  1. Duchenne muscular dystrophy –

The most common form of muscular dystrophy in children. It affects only male childs. It is appears between the ages of 2-6. The muscles decrease in size and grow weaken over time yet may appear larger. In many case, the arms legs and spine becomes progressively deformed and there may be some cognitive impairment.

  1. Bekes muscular dystrophy –

This is similar to Duchenne muscular dystrophy. But the disease is much milder, symptoms appear later and progress more slowly. It is usually appears between the ages of 2 – 16 but it can appears as late at age 25. This is also affects only male child.

  1. myotonic muscular dystrophy –

Myotonic Dystrophy is also known as stemerts disease. This is most common form of of muscular dystrophy in adults. It affects both men and women and usually appears anytime from early childhood to adulthood. In rare cases, it appears in newborns that is congenital. The name refers to a symptoms myotonia prolonged sparm or stiffening of muscles after use. Those with myotonic Muscular dystrophy have a decreased life expectancy.

  1. Limb girdle Muscular dystrophy

This appears in the teens to early adulthood and affect both girls and boys. In it’s common form, limb girdle muscle dystrophy causes progressive weakness that begins in the hips and moves to the shoulder, arms and legs. Severity of muscle weakness varies. Some children have only mild weakness while others develop Savere disabilities.

  1. Fasioscaplo humeral muscular dystrophy

This appears in early adulthood and affects equally boys and girls. Symptoms usually start when children are between 8 to 15 years old. Tends to progress slowly. Muscle weakness first developed in the face making it difficult for a child to close the eyes, whistle or puff out the cheecks. The shoulder and back muscles gradually become weak and children have trouble lifting object for raising their hands over head. Overtime the legs and pelvic muscles also may loose strength.

  1. Congenital Muscular dystrophy

Congenital means present at birth. Congenital muscular dystrophy progress slowly. It affects both boy and girls. Distinguishing feature of the congenital dystrophies by contrast with other muscle dystrophies it’s a association with brain malformations, particularly disorders of cortical developments such as lissencephaly or pachygyria & polymicrogyria.

The two forms that have been identified-

Fukuyama & coneine muscular dystrophy

Fukuyama Muscular dystrophy causes abnormalities in the brain and often seizers.

Congenital Muscular dystrophy with myosin deficiency cause muscle weakness of birth or in the first few months of life along with severe and early contractures.

  1. Ocalophgryngeal muscular dystrophy

This form of Muscular dystrophy appears in men and womens in the age 40 to 60. It is mainly affects mainly on eye and throat. It progresses is slowly causing weakness in the muscles which may lead to difficulty in swallowing,  weakness in pelvic and Shoulder muscles may occur later.

  1. Distact muscular dystrophy

It is rare disease affects both men and women. It causes weakness and wasting of distal muscles of the the fore arms, lower legs and feet. It is generally less severe, progresses more slowly and affects fewer muscles then other form of muscle dystrophy.

  1. Emery dreifuss muscular dystrophy

This rare form of muscle dystrophy appears from childhood to the early teen and affects mainly boys. In very rare cases girls can be affected. It occur in careers of the gene.

As per Ayurveda

In Ayurved it has been classified under medomanasa dashti further vitates the vata dosha occurs due to the Bheejabaga haavyava Dushti which lead to vata prakopa takes sthana samshraya in mamsa & medo Dhata vitiates & depletes them progressive degenerative disorder of muscle tissue in charak Samhita  Acharya charak clearly mentioned about the close relation of both mamsa and medo Dhatu to dhatukshayay vata pathogenesis which term degrades and causes the Dashti.

In Ayurved have lots of description of etiopathology and management of mansagata Dushti which can be co-related with the muscular dystrophy.

All major neuromuscular disorders are identified with vata Dosha. In Ayurveda the this pathogenesis can be clearly understood by the concept of Adi bala pravritta vyadhi. Hear the pathogenesis occur due to the Beejbhagavayava Dushti which leads to mamsa vata dushti. This disorder can be considered under vata vikar due to Beeja Dushti because of Adibalapravrita. The important causative factors can be brought under Aatma Karmaja & Beeja Dosha. These factors bring Khavaigunya at mamsa Dhatu levels leading to vitation of vata which causes Bhutagni imairment. Thus these causes attribute to muscular dystrophies may be analysed as Beeja Dushti Atma karma are responsible for the X-linked resessive disease as well as gene mutation.

Ayurvedic treatment of muscular dystrophy

Internal medicine

Rasayana chikitsa

Brihana chikitsa

Dosh dhatu balancing treatment

Dipan pachan chikitsa

Srotoshodhak chikitsa

Panchakarma

Basti

Vamana

Virechana

Udvartana

Lepana

Snehan

Swedana

Pinda Sweda

Nasya

Yoga & Pranayama

 Meditation

 Ahar (diet) – (Pathya – Apathya)