LIMB GIRDLE MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY DIAGNOSIS

LIMB GIRDLE MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY DIAGNOSIS.

LGMD is a muscle wasting condition and prior to a diagnosis most people experience general weakness of the shoulder and pelvic girdles. LGMD is progressive and to have a diagnosis you will have to under certain tests.

The doctor will want to know your medical and family history first and examine you. The reason why your family history is needed is to distinguish the pattern of inheritance and to establish whether you are autosomal dominant or autosomal recessive.

The doctor will then proceed to conduct a physical exam and a neurological evaluation to show muscle strength assessment; this test will show where weakness there is weakness.

The tests may include the following:

v      Blood tests: This test can show raised creatine kinase (ck) levels which may be a problem in the muscles.CK isa muscle enzyme, which is released into the bloodstream at high levels when there is muscle fibre damage. Some people also show elevated CK serum levels. These enzymes are referred to as liver enzymes people with muscular dystrophy are sometimes diagnosed with liver disease because of this elevated levels.

v      Electromyography (EMG): This test measures the response of muscle to stimulation of its nerve supply and the electrical activity in the muscle. EMG helps to identify the type of muscle involved hence it can give an LGMD diagnosis.

v      Muscle biopsy: This test is very important because by studying a muscle biopsy we can clearly know what type of LGMD someone might have. This is mainly so because this test can show directly the proteins absent or reduced in different types of LGMD. It should also be noted that the muscle biopsy alone can sometimes not distinguish between the exact types of LGMD. In these instances genetic testing should be done.

There are some people who despite undergoing all the above tests, they do not have a precise LGMD diagnosis