title: Distal chronic spinal muscular atrophy involving the hands.
abstract: Six patients are described with a history of slowly progressive wasting of the muscle of the hands and forearms extending over periods of up to 20 years. The clinical, radiological, and electrophysiological findings were consistent with a diagnosis of chronic anterior horn cell degeneration. It is suggested that the patients are affected by a form of distal chronic spinal muscular atrophy affecting the hands.
mesh_terms: D000200:Action Potentials; D000328:Adult; D000870:Anterior Horn Cells / Q000473:pathology; D002908:Chronic Disease; D004594:Electrophysiology; D005260:Female; D005542:Forearm; D006225:Hand; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009133:Muscular Atrophy / Q000150:complications*; D009135:Muscular Diseases / Q000209:etiology*; D009410:Nerve Degeneration; D009431:Neural Conduction; D013118:Spinal Cord Diseases / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology