Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

Starting tomorrow and ending February 19 is a week dedicated to raising awareness about Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, the most common form of the disease.

Muscular Dystrophy is a group of genetic diseases that cause progressive weakness in your muscles.  The proteins used to promote good muscle health are not working for you. You also lose muscle mass. 

If you are old enough, you may remember the Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy telethon that took place Labor Day weekend for 21 years.  

The telethon ran from 1966 to 2010 and raised $2.45 billion dollars for research on this disease.  After 2010 the telethons changed and finally stopped in 2015.

This disease occurs in more boys than girls.  Symptoms can appear as early as age three to six but also in adulthood.

You cannot be cured of this disease but with diagnosis you can get therapy to manage your symptoms.  Additionally, there are medications available to help slow the progression of the disease.

It’s important to be aware of some of the signs and symptoms:

• Frequent falls
• Difficulty rising from a lying or sitting position
• Trouble running and jumping
• Waddling gait
• Walking on the toes
• Large calf muscles
• Muscle pain and stiffness
• Learning disabilities
• Delayed growth

Private Home Health Care thinks it’s important to raise awareness about this difficult disease.