Is muscular dystrophy a fatal disease?

Some types of muscular dystrophy, such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy in boys, are deadly. Other types cause little disability and people have a normal lifespan.

Is there a link between muscular dystrophy and cancer?

Type of Muscular Dystrophy Linked to Raised Cancer Risk. TUESDAY, Dec. 13 (HealthDay News) — People with a certain type of muscular dystrophy have twice the risk of being diagnosed with cancer as the general population, although the actual risk is relatively low, a new study finds. Most Nations May Be Rid of Cervical Cancer Soon.

What happens to your muscles when you have muscular dystrophy?

What is muscular dystrophy? Muscular dystrophy is a group of inherited diseases that damage and weaken your muscles over time. This damage and weakness is due to the lack of a protein called dystrophin, which is necessary for normal muscle function.

Can a person with muscular dystrophy have heart problems?

When a muscular dystrophy patient also has facial stiffness and situations such as waking up with dry or burning eyes, this may be a sign that the patient’s eyelids were not fully closed for the whole duration of rest. As the heart itself is a muscle, developing heart problems are not unheard of when a patient has muscular dystrophy.

Why do people with muscular dystrophy have trouble eating?

Due to hardened facial and throat muscles, patients experiencing muscular dystrophy have trouble with food intake because of the reduced mobility.

Type of Muscular Dystrophy Linked to Raised Cancer Risk. TUESDAY, Dec. 13 (HealthDay News) — People with a certain type of muscular dystrophy have twice the risk of being diagnosed with cancer as the general population, although the actual risk is relatively low, a new study finds. Most Nations May Be Rid of Cervical Cancer Soon.

What are the symptoms and causes of muscular dystrophy?

Muscular dystrophy 1 Overview. Muscular dystrophy is a group of diseases that cause progressive weakness and loss of muscle mass. 2 Symptoms. The main sign of muscular dystrophy is progressive muscle weakness. 3 Causes. Certain genes are involved in making proteins that protect muscle fibers. 4 Risk factors. 5 Complications.

Heart problems. Muscular dystrophy can reduce the efficiency of the heart muscle. Swallowing problems. If the muscles involved with swallowing are affected, nutritional problems and aspiration pneumonia can develop. Feeding tubes might be an option.

What are the causes of death in Duchenne muscular dystrophy?

A study done in Sweden on patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) revealed that 40% of patients died due to cardiac failure. Respiratory failure is another cause of death in most types of muscular dystrophy.