[Report of four women with Duchenne or Becker muscular dystrophy].
BACKGROUND
Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy are X-linked and affect mainly males. The authors report four female cases.


METHODS
Four patients presented muscular deficiency predominant to lower limbs and chronic disease. Female distrophinopathy is understandable by three mechanisms: Turner's syndrome, translocation X-chromosome with an autosome and skewed X-chromosome inactivation.


CONCLUSIONS
Diagnosis of female Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy is really difficult if there is not male case in family.
Lescaut
W
W
Fédération des maladies neuromusculaires, service de rééducation fonctionnelle, CHU d'Archet-I, 06202 Nice 03, France. wlescaut@hotmail.com
Butori
C
C
Soriani
M H
MH
Desnuelles
C
C
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D020388:Muscular Dystrophy, Duchenne / Q000175:diagnosis*