Neuromuscular disorders

Aster Hospitals provides a wide range of treatment options for neuromuscular disorders and diseases that impact the nerves that supply impulses and function to the muscles in different parts of the body. 

The human body is home to more than 650 muscles that have voluntary action and help to move different body parts. A neuromuscular disorder typically starts with a malfunction or death of the nerve cells supplying the voluntary muscles. It generally happens in muscle fibers, peripheral nerves, or the junction between nerves and muscles.

The voluntary muscles move different body parts, such as the face, hands, and legs. Several neuromuscular disorders are seen to manifest as a hereditary disease and also as a side effect of other autoimmune conditions.

Common neuromuscular disorders

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

This condition causes death and damage to nerve cells as the disease progresses. Symptoms include weak muscles, difficulty in walking, difficulty in using hands, uncoordinated movements, problems with swallowing, and speech difficulties.

Charcot Marie tooth disease

This is an inherited disorder that propagates several symptoms due to damaged nerves. This disease progresses very slowly and is not categorized to be fatal. Symptoms include weakness in the limbs.

Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP)

This is an autoimmune disorder that damages the protective covering (sheath) that surrounds the nerve tissue. Symptoms include weakness in the limbs and extremities.

Gillian-Barre syndrome

This syndrome is a group of symptoms which belong to an autoimmune disorder. The cause of this disease is the attack of the body's immune system on the peripheral nervous system. It primarily attacks the myelinated sheath that surrounds the nervous tissue. Symptoms include weakness and restricted movement of the limbs.

Lambert Eaton syndrome

This is an autoimmune disorder in which the antibodies produced by the body's immune system attack the calcium channel at the neuromuscular junction (junction between the transmitting nerve cell and a muscle fiber). Symptoms include shivering extremities, weakened muscles, and muscle fatigue in the arms and legs.

Multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disorder that impacts large areas of the myelin sheath that protects the nervous tissue. Unlike other conditions, multiple sclerosis affects the nerves in different body parts, such as the optic nerve, brain, and spinal cord. A person with multiple sclerosis may show different phases of the disease in episodes. Sometimes, they may have an increase in the severity of the symptoms, and sometimes, they may not have any symptoms at all.

Myasthenia gravis

This autoimmune disease affects the muscle receptors anywhere in the body. It usually targets the large muscles of the limbs. Symptoms include difficulty in walking, uncoordinated hand and leg movements, speech difficulty, vision issues, and eating problems.

Peripheral neuropathy

These are a group of symptoms that are the precipitation of systemic disorders such as diabetes. It affects the nerves beyond the spinal cord and the brain. Symptoms include pain and tingling sensation in the extremities and muscle weakness.

Spinal muscular atrophy

This severe genetic disorder affects the muscles in different parts of the body. It can begin in infancy or childhood, but some cases are also seen with onset in adulthood. It progressively degenerates the muscles and imapcts lifespan. Symptoms include loss of muscle tissue in the arms and legs, difficulty in speech, breathing issues, and difficulty in swallowing. 

General symptoms of neuromuscular disorders

Neuromuscular disorders can be seen at any point in life. Many disorders start in infancy or childhood, whereas some develop symptoms when a person is older. A typical feature of neuromuscular disease symptoms is that the severity of symptoms can vary drastically from one person to another. One may present mild symptoms, whereas another person with the same disorder may have more severe symptoms. The more common symptoms include 

• Vision problems
• Uncoordinated movements
• Difficulty in eating and swallowing
• Breathing problems
• Balance and movement issues
• Pain
• Stiffness of muscles and joints
• Sudden cramps in the muscle
• Weakness of limbs
• Loss of muscle mass

Risk factors for neuromuscular disorders

The risk factors for neuromuscular disorders include:

• Age
• Genetics
• Smoking
• Chronic deficiency of essential vitamins

Health Conditions Treated

•  Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
• Spinal muscular atrophy
• Peripheral neuropathy
• Myasthenia gravis
• Multiple sclerosis
• Lambert Eaton syndrome
• Gillian-Barre syndrome
• Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP)
• Charcot Marie tooth disease
• ALS
• Motor neuron disease
• Inflammatory myopathies
• Dejerine-Sottas disease
• Friedreich's ataxia
• Metabolic muscle disorders
• Central core disease
• Hyperthyroid myopathy
• Myotonia congenita
• Myotubular myopathy
• Nemaline myopathy
• Paramiotonia congenita
• Periodic paralysis-hypokalemic-hyperkalemic