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Myopathy in Gaucher disease
Author(s) -
Tsai LiKai,
Chien YinHsiu,
Yang ChihChao,
Hwu WuhLiang
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
journal of inherited metabolic disease
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.462
H-Index - 102
eISSN - 1573-2665
pISSN - 0141-8955
DOI - 10.1007/s10545-007-0795-4
Subject(s) - medicine , hepatosplenomegaly , myopathy , proximal muscle weakness , muscle biopsy , enzyme replacement therapy , muscle weakness , parkinsonism , glucocerebrosidase , weakness , substrate reduction therapy , pediatrics , etiology , disease , pathology , biopsy , surgery
Summary Gaucher disease is a recessively inherited lysosomal storage disorder, caused by deficiency of glucocerebrosidase activity. Affected individuals usually present with hepatosplenomegaly, anaemia, thrombocytopenia, and skeletal diseases. A wide range of neurological manifestations have also been recognized in Gaucher patients including acute neurological deterioration in infancy, mental retardation, ocular motor apraxia, seizure, and parkinsonism. Although muscle weakness is not an uncommon finding in patients with Gaucher disease, the aetiology of weakness is not well understood. We prospectively investigated seven Gaucher patients and found that four of them (patients 1–4) had mild to moderate degree of proximal‐predominant symmetrical muscle weakness in four limbs. By history, three patients (patients 1–3) developed insidious onset of nonprogressive muscle weakness in four limbs with easy muscle fatigue from adolescence. A needle electromyographic study detected some small, brief polyphasic waves in these four patients. Muscle biopsy in one patient (patient 1) showed a few atrophic type II muscle fibres without infiltration of Gaucher cells. Three patients (patients 1–3) continuously received enzyme replacement therapy with imiglucerase and their muscle strength seemed improved after two years. We concluded that Gaucher disease may be associated with myopathy.