Myotonic Dystrophy
Myotonic dystrophy is characterized by myotonia. Myotonia causes muscular contractions that last very long and relax very slowly. You cannot relax the muscles yourself after contraction. Myotonic dystrophy may also be called dystrophia myotonica or Steinert’s disease. It is the only type of muscular dystrophy marked by myotonia.
This dystrophy is more common in adults who are in their twenties and thirties. It may affect the facial muscles, adrenal glands, thyroid, eyes, gut, heart, lungs, or central nervous system. The severity of the symptoms varies and can range from mild to life-threatening.
Signs of myotonic muscular dystrophy include [5]:
- Drooping facial muscles that make your face long and sick-looking
- Drooping eyelids, also known as ptosis
- Difficulty swallowing
- Difficulty raising your head because of bad neck muscles
- Poor vision and development of cataracts
- Early baldness in the front of the scalp
- Impotence and testicular atrophy
- Infertility and irregular menstruation
- Weight loss