What is the average lifespan of a person with muscular dystrophy

It is important to treat chest infections promptly - for example, by getting medical advice early and taking antibiotic medicine where needed. Also, you will be offered immunisation with influenza and pneumococcal vaccines, to help prevent chest infections. Physiotherapy can help to clear mucus from the chest.

As the breathing muscles become weaker, oxygen levels in the blood may be reduced, more so while sleeping. Because this develops gradually, the symptoms may not be obvious. Possible symptoms are tiredness, irritability, morning headaches, night-time waking and vivid dreams. Breathing problems can be helped in various ways. There are techniques to assist breathing and coughing, which can be taught by a physiotherapist. Also, various types of equipment can be used to assist breathing.

Often, what helps is a method called 'non-invasive ventilation'. This uses a mask worn over the mouth or nose and delivers air which is pressurised. The extra air pressure compensates for the breathing muscles' weakness. Non-invasive ventilation can often be used in a way which does not interfere too much with other activities - for example, it may only be needed at night or from time to time. The equipment can be portable.

There are various other methods to help improve breathing and oxygen levels. The aim is to find the one most suited to each individual. It is helpful if breathing problems are detected and treated early; so patients with DMD will usually be offered regular 'lung function tests' once they start to have significant muscle weakness. These are simple tests which can monitor the strength of the breathing muscles and the level of oxygen in the blood.

In the later stages of DMD, the muscle weakness progresses and more support will be needed for breathing. This type of treatment has improved over recent years, which has helped to improve the quality of life and outlook for people with DMD.

Teenagers and adults with DMD may develop a heart problem called cardiomyopathy , which means weakness of the heart muscle. With DMD, the cardiomyopathy does not usually cause much in the way of symptoms. Possible symptoms are tiredness, leg swelling, shortness of breath or an irregular heartbeat. Cardiomyopathy can be helped by medication. This treatment seems to work best if started at an early stage, before symptoms are noticed.

So people with DMD are usually offered regular heart check-ups, starting from early childhood. The check-ups usually involve a 'heart tracing' an electrocardiogram, or ECG to record the heartbeat and an ultrasound of the heart an echocardiogram, or echo. DMD is a very serious condition and it does shorten life. Because the muscle weakness increases gradually over the years, complications eventually develop.

The breathing or heart problems usually become more serious for older teenagers or people in their 20s. In the past, most people with DMD did not live beyond their early 20s. Improvements in treatment have meant that life expectancy has increased. At present, average life expectancy for people with DMD is 27 years. However, there is a lot of individual variation in the severity of DMD and the individual life expectancy. The outlook prognosis may improve further in future, with advances in treatment.

The most serious complication, and the usual cause of death for people with DMD, is the respiratory complications, such as a severe chest infection at the stage when lung function is already poor. However, carrying the DMD gene might affect you in one of the following ways:. Passing on the gene. A woman who has the DMD gene can pass it on to her children.

Normally there will be a 1 in 2 chance that the gene will be passed on to your child, as explained above. It can be helpful to have advice from a specialist in genetics a geneticist , who can discuss your individual situation. In many cases, prenatal testing is possible, to find out whether an unborn child carries the DMD gene.

Muscle symptoms. A small number of women carrying the DMD gene may develop some muscle weakness. This probably occurs in about 3 in women carrying the gene. The muscle weakness is usually mild but there is a lot of individual variation.

Rarely, there can be a muscle weakness similar to that in boys with DMD. If there is a weakness, it may increase progress slowly over time. We do not know why some women with the DMD gene develop muscle weakness, while others do not have any symptoms. It may be due to a process called 'X inactivation'. In this process, the 'normal' X chromosome is not active and therefore cannot compensate for the 'abnormal' X chromosome which carries the DMD gene. Heart problems.

Some women carrying the DMD gene may develop heart muscle disease cardiomyopathy or an abnormal heart rhythm. If this happens, it is usually milder and starts at a later age, compared to boys with DMD.

At present, there is a debate about how likely this problem actually is. Recent research from the UK found that most women with the DMD gene had only very minor changes found on heart check-ups.

Also, this research found no difference in life expectancy between women carrying the DMD gene and those without it. Other research suggested that 1 in 10 women with the DMD gene might develop some form of cardiomyopathy.

Therefore, some doctors are recommending regular heart check-ups for women who have the DMD gene. For example, they may suggest an ECG and an echo explained above once every few years, from around the age of However, doctors are uncertain as to how much this monitoring is useful or necessary. There is a lot of research taking place aiming to improve treatment and perhaps find a cure for DMD.

Some aspects of current research are:. Guidelines for the respiratory management of children with neuromuscular weakness ; British Thoracic Society Arch Dis Child. Epub Jul 7. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. Birnkrant DJ, Bushby K, Bann CM, et al ; Diagnosis and management of Duchenne muscular dystrophy, part 1: diagnosis, and neuromuscular, rehabilitation, endocrine, and gastrointestinal and nutritional management. There are nine different categories used for diagnosis.

This type of muscular dystrophy is the most common among children. The majority of individuals affected are boys. The symptoms include:. People with Duchenne muscular dystrophy typically require a wheelchair before their teenage years.

The life expectancy for those with this disease is late teens or 20s. This type of muscular dystrophy also more commonly affects boys. Muscle weakness occurs mostly in your arms and legs, with symptoms appearing between age 11 and Most people with Becker muscular dystrophy live until middle age or later.

Congenital muscular dystrophies are often apparent between birth and age 2. Symptoms vary and may include:. While symptoms vary from mild to severe, the majority of people with congenital muscular dystrophy are unable to sit or stand without help. The lifespan of someone with this type also varies, depending on the symptoms. Some people with congenital muscular dystrophy die in infancy while others live until adulthood. This form of muscular dystrophy causes myotonia, which is an inability to relax your muscles after they contract.

Myotonia is exclusive to this type of muscular dystrophy. This dystrophy type may also cause impotence and testicular atrophy in males. In women, it may cause irregular periods and infertility. Myotonic dystrophy diagnoses are most common in adults in their 20s and 30s.

The severity of symptoms can vary greatly. Some people experience mild symptoms, while others have potentially life-threatening symptoms involving the heart and lungs. This type of muscular dystrophy affects the muscles in your face, shoulders, and upper arms.

FSHD may cause:. FSHD tends to progress slowly. Most people with this condition live a full life span. Limb-girdle muscular dystrophy causes weakening of the muscles and a loss of muscle bulk.

This type of muscular dystrophy usually begins in your shoulders and hips, but it may also occur in your legs and neck. You may find it hard to get up out of a chair, walk up and down stairs, and carry heavy items if you have limb-girdle muscular dystrophy. Over time, this causes increasing disability.

The mutations are often inherited from a person's parents. If you have a family history of MD, your GP may refer you for genetic testing and counselling to evaluate your risk of developing the condition or having a child with MD and to discuss the options available to you.

Read more about the causes of MD and genetic testing for MD. There are many different types of MD, each with somewhat different symptoms. Not all types cause severe disability and many don't affect life expectancy. Read more about the types of MD and diagnosing MD. Duchenne MD is the most common type of MD. In the UK, about boys are born with Duchenne MD each year, and there are about 2, people living with the condition in the UK at any one time. Myotonic MD is the second most common type of MD, affecting around 1 person in every 8, Facioscapulohumeral MD is thought to affect around 1 in every 20, people in the UK, making it the third most common MD.

Many different methods can be used to diagnose the various types of MD. The age at which the condition is diagnosed will vary depending on when symptoms first start to appear. See a GP if you or your child has any symptoms of MD.