dystrophy
(dis′trŏ-fē)
[dys- + -trophy]
A general term for tissue degeneration such as that caused by diseases of nutrition or metabolism.
dystrophic (dis-trō′fiĭk), adj.
adiposogenital dystrophy
SEE: Fröhlich syndrome.
asphyxiating thoracic dystrophy
SEE: Jeune syndrome.
Becker muscular dystrophy
Bietti crystalline dystrophy
cone-rod dystrophy
A form of retinitis pigmentosa in which central visual loss occurs first. Common symptoms include progressive visual loss followed by the loss of color perception, and eventually peripheral visual loss and night blindness. The visual loss is not correctable with standard lenses.
SEE: retinitis pigmentosa
congenital hereditary endothelial dystrophy
ABBR: CHED An eye disorder in which the corneal endothelium becomes cloudy, resulting in myopia.
corneal dystrophy
Any of several inherited disorders (such as Fuchs dystrophy, lattice dystrophy, and map-to-dot dystrophy) in which the cornea becomes cloudy, hazy, or speckled, resulting in variable degrees of visual loss.
corneoretinal dystrophy
distal muscular dystrophy
ABBR: DD One of several rare forms of muscular dystrophy in which the forearm, hand, calf, and foot muscles are primarily affected as opposed to the muscles of the shoulders or pelvic girdle. Its onset is usually in adults between the ages of 40 and 60.
SYN: SEE: distal myopathy
Duchenne muscular dystrophy
Emery-Dreifuss muscular dystrophy
facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy
A hereditary, progressive muscular dystrophy with onset in childhood or adolescence. It is marked by atrophic changes in the muscles of the shoulder girdle and face, inability to raise the arms above the head, myopathic facies, eyelids that remain partly open in sleep, and inability to whistle or purse the lips.
TREATMENT
Therapy is supportive; e.g., orthopedic devices can be used to prevent functional losses at the shoulder girdle. The patient should be encouraged to maintain as full and normal a life as possible and to avoid prolonged bed rest.
macular dystrophy
Any inherited, progressive degeneration of the macula lutea retinae marked by progressive central visual loss beginning in childhood or adolescence. Representative forms of macular dystrophy include Best disease and Stargardt disease.
SEE: macula lutea retinae
muscular dystrophy
Any of more than 50 distinct genetic syndromes that affect muscular strength and action, some of which first become obvious in infancy, others manifesting in adolescence or young adulthood. The syndromes are marked by either generalized or localized muscle weakness, difficulties with walking or maintaining posture, muscle spasms, and sometimes neurological, behavioral, cardiac, or other functional limitations. Detailed information about the disease can be obtained from the Muscular Dystrophy Association website at www.mdausa.org.
myotonic dystrophy
ABBR: DM An autosomal dominant disorder caused by the repeated expansion of the trinucleotide sequence cytosine-thymidine-guanine (CTG) in the DNA of chromosome 19. It is the most commonly inherited of the muscular dystrophies.
oculopharyngeal muscular dystrophy
ABBR: OPMD A rare form of muscular dystrophy in which muscles that control the eyelids and swallowing are primarily affected. Ptosis and dysphagia beginning in the patient's late 40s or early 50s are characteristic symptoms. Weakness in the limbs often follows. The disease occurs most often in French-Canadian or Hispanic kindreds.
progressive muscular dystrophy
pseudohypertrophic muscular dystrophy
reflex sympathetic dystrophy
An abnormal response of the nerves of the face or of an extremity, marked by pain, autonomic dysfunction, vasomotor instability, and tissue swelling. Although the precise cause of the syndrome is unknown, it often follows trauma, stroke, neuropathy, or radiculopathy. In about one third of all patients, the onset is insidious. Affected patients often complain of burning pain with any movement of an affected body part, excessive sensitivity to light touch or minor stimulation, temperature changes (heat or cold) in the affected limb, localized sweating, localized changes of skin color, or atrophic changes in the skin, nails, or musculature.
SYN: SEE: algodystrophy; SEE: complex regional pain syndrome, type 1; SEE: shoulder-hand syndrome; SEE: Sudeck disease
TREATMENT
Early mobilization of the body part with multimodality therapy may improve the symptoms of reflex sympathetic dystrophy. Drug therapies often include prednisone or other corticosteroids and narcotic analgesics; transcutaneous electrical stimulation, physical therapy, or nerve blocks may also prove helpful.
rod-cone dystrophy
A form of retinitis pigmentosa in which rod degeneration precedes cone degeneration. Night blindness is usually the first symptom, followed by peripheral visual loss.
Schnyder crystalline dystrophy
twenty-nail dystrophy
Longitudinal ridging and fragmentation of all the fingernails and toenails. It is a characteristic finding in lichen planus.
vitelliform dystrophy
vitelliform macular dystrophy
An autosomal dominant retinal disease in which central visual acuity is diminished when lipofuscin accumulates under the macula. When the disease occurs in childhood, it is called Best disease.