Table of Contents
- Overview
- Symptoms
- Treatment
- Prevention
- Images
Benign pseudohypertrophic muscular dystrophy; Becker's dystrophy
Treatment
There is no known cure for Becker muscular dystrophy. The goal of treatment is to control symptoms to maximize the person's quality of life. Some doctors prescribe steroids to help keep a patient walking for as long as possible.
Activity is encouraged. Inactivity (such as bed rest) can make the muscle disease worse. Physical therapy may be helpful to maintain muscle strength. Orthopedic appliances such as braces and wheelchairs may improve mobility and self-care.
Genetic counseling may be recommended. Daughters of a man with Becker muscular dystrophy may carry the defective gene and could pass it onto their sons.
Support Groups
You can ease the
See:
Expectations (prognosis)
Becker muscular dystrophy leads to slowly worsening disability, although the degree of disability varies. Some men may need a wheelchair, while others may only need to use walking aids such as canes or braces.
Complications
- Heart-related complications such as cardiomyopathy
- Lung failure
-
Pneumonia or otherrespiratory infections - Increasing and permanent disability, that leads to:
- Decreased ability to care for self
- Decreased mobility
Calling your health care provider
Call your health care provider if:
- Symptoms of Becker muscular dystrophy appear
- A person with Becker muscular dystrophy develops new symptoms (particularly
fever withcough orbreathing difficulties ) - You are planning to start a family and you or other family members have been diagnosed with Becker muscular dystrophy
Images
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Review Date: 03/09/2010
Reviewed By: Neil K. Kaneshiro, MD, MHA, Clinical Assistant Professor of
Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine; and Daniel
B. Hoch, PhD, MD, Assistant Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical
School, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital.
Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M.,
Inc.
A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org)
