Cardiovascular health in muscular dystrophies

PubMed, the Internet portal of biomedical and life sciences literature, indexed an interesting article, entitled Cardiovascular health supervision for individuals affected by Duchenne or Becker muscular dystrophy (Pediatrics 2005 Dec;116(6):1569-73). The authors are from the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery. Duchenne muscular dystrophy is the most common and severe form of the childhood muscular dystrophies. Becker muscular dystrophy is less common and has a milder clinical course. Both diseases results in respiratory and cardiac failure. The natural history of the cardiomyopathy in these diseases has not been well established. As a result, patients traditionally present for cardiac evaluation only after clinical symptoms become evident. The purpose of this policy statement is to provide recommendations for optimal cardiovascular evaluation to health care specialists caring for individuals in whom the diagnosis of Duchenne or Becker muscular dystrophy has been confirmed. To access the full abstract of the article, click here.