title: The rigid spine syndrome and Emery-Dreifuss muscular dystrophy.
abstract: We present five patients, three of whom suffered from a rigid spine syndrome and two from Emery-Dreifuss muscular dystrophy. One patient with rigid spine syndrome showed a nonprogressive course, normal cardiac rhythm and mild myopathic changes in muscle histology, while in the other two patients there was a rapidly progressive course, sinus tachycardia without cardiac conduction defects and marked fiber necrosis in muscle histology. The two patients suffering from Emery-Dreifuss muscular dystrophy showed a very mildly progressing course, myopathic changes in muscle histology, cardiac conduction defects and deviations in electrocardiograms. These findings show that rigid spine syndrome can be distinguished from Emery-Dreifuss muscular dystrophy.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004562:Electrocardiography; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009132:Muscles / Q000473:pathology; D009136:Muscular Dystrophies / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D013122:Spinal Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D013577:Syndrome