Active clinical trials for "Myotonic Dystrophy"

Myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1) is the most frequent neuromuscular disease in adults. DM1 patients have an impaired prognosis (mean age of death <60 years) due to cardiac and respiratory complications. Our primary objective was to identify cardiac and respiratory prognostic factors in DM1.

Background: Myotonic dystrophy lead to highly heterogeneous, multisystemic symptoms including myotonia, progressive muscle weakness, cardiac conduction defects, cataract, metabolic dysfunction, and excessive daytime somnolence. This last symptom is related to respiratory failure and/or to involvement of the central nervous system. However the metabolic disturbances could contribute to it. From the respiratory point of view this disease is characterised by the progressive appearance of respiratory failure of muscular origin but mainly associated with a defect in the central respiratory drive. The treatment for this hypoventilation is non-invasive ventilation (NIV). It is not currently absolutely clear as to the best choice of criteria to judge long term effectiveness of NIV. The most usual criteria are normalisation of daytime blood gases, diminution of respiratory work, improvement in daytime symptoms and improvement in sleep structure. Other criteria are currently little studied, for instance the contribution of the interaction between alveolar hypoventilation and oxygen desaturation during the night and biological deficiencies such as systemic inflammation, glucose intolerance or insulin resistance. Likewise there is little information about the interaction between alveolar hypoventilation and endothelial dysfunction and arterial stiffness both being accurate predictive factors for cardiovascular risks. Aim: to evaluate the impact of NIV on endothelial dysfunction in patients with myotonic dystrophy. The secondary objectives are to assess the impact of NIV on systemic inflammation, arterial stiffness, insulin-resistance, quality of sleep, and daytime vigilance in these patients. Methods: Patients with chronic alveolar hypoventilation already treated by long term NIV will be included. They will have an initial check-up (Visit 1), then will interrupt NIV treatment for four weeks (Visit 2), and then return to NIV treatment. The last check-up will be done four weeks after NIV resumption (Visit3). Expected results: It is expected that NIV withdrawal will results in a deterioration of cardio-vascular parameters (endothelial function and arterial stiffness), metabolic parameters (insulin-resistance and systemic inflammation), quality of sleep and daytime vigilance. Return to NIV treatment may show an improvement of these parameters with a basal state recovery.

The primary aim is to characterize the prevalence, severity and quality of musculoskeletal nociceptive pain in adult patients with neuromuscular disorders (NMD). The secondary objectives are to evaluate whether severity and distribution of muscle pain is associated with muscle function, and to assess whether muscle pain is associated with alterations of muscle elasticity and muscle stiffness. Results of patients with neuromuscular disorders will be compared to age- and gender-matched healthy volunteers. Approx. 70 patients with neuromuscular disorders and 20 healthy volunteers will be enrolled, including patients with the following neuromuscular disorders: histologically confirmed inclusion body myositis (IBM), genetically confirmed late-onset Pompe disease (LOPD), genetically confirmed spinal muscular atrophy type 3 (SMA3), genetically confirmed facio-scapulo-humeral muscle dystrophy (FSHD), genetically confirmed myotonic dystrophy type 1 or type 2 (DM1, DM2). The duration of patient recruitment will be around 12 months.

OBJECTIVES: I. Examine the interrelationships between muscle wasting (phenotype), the degree of myotonic dystrophy (DM) gene expression (genotype) in patients with DM. II. Characterize the insulin resistance in these patients. III. Assess the glucose uptake in the leg and forearm tissues of these patients. IV. Determine the stability of the DM gene lesion in muscles over a 5-10 year period.

The risk for venous thromboembolism (VTE) in DM1 and in other inherited myopathies, which can lead to chronic immobilization, are unknown. The purpose of this study is to evaluate incidence of VTE in cohort of patients presenting with DM1 with a comparison to a group of other inheritable myopathies and to a community-based population.

Adult myotonic muscular dystrophy (Steinert's disease) is the most common inherited neuromuscular disorder. Cardiac rhythm disturbances occur frequently in this disease state and may be responsible for up to one-third of deaths. In this study, we intend to evaluate the utility of non-invasive electrocardiographic screening methods and history in predicting serious arrhythmic events.

The aim of this study is to quantify muscle relaxation properties of the finger flexor muscles in patients with different myopathies. The inhibiting effects of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) on the cortical motor hand area are used to induce relaxation, which in turn will be monitored with handgrip dynamometry and EMG. The investigators will evaluate if this technique can be implemented as a diagnostic tool in clinical practice. Muscle relaxation is an often overlooked property of the muscle as compared to muscle strength or activation. Muscle relaxation is affected in different myopathies, such as myotonic dystrophy, non-dystrophic myotonias, and Brody myopathy. Therefore, a diagnostic tool to quantify muscle relaxation is of clinical and scientific importance. In this study, transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is used, in combination with a dynamometer to quantify muscle relaxation properties. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive technique that is commonly used to stimulate the brain. In practice, a circular coil is held directly above the scalp, upon which a strong current pulse induces a magnetic field that stimulates the underlying superficial brain areas. This stimulation can have both activating and inhibiting effects. When the motor cortex (i.e. the area of the brain that controls muscle contractions) is strongly stimulated with TMS during a voluntary muscle contraction, both excitatory and inhibitory effects can be observed in the muscle the targeted cortical area controls. The inhibitory effect entails a transient interruption of neural drive to the muscle. This interruption, called the "silent period", lasts for less than half a second and results in the relaxation of the muscle. Muscle activity and control quickly return to normal after the silent period. The elegance and main advantage of TMS-induced muscle relaxation lies in the fact that it excludes all voluntary influences on the relaxation process. Furthermore, the TMS pulse causes all muscle fibres involved in the contraction just prior to the onset of the silent period to relax simultaneously. This allows us to study muscle relaxation as only a property of the muscle, i.e. without voluntary influences. In this study, the investigators will measure muscle relaxation in several myopathies (McArdle disease, Nemaline myopathy type 6 and myotonic dystrophy type 2) and compare this to healthy controls and to controls with no myopathy but with similar complaints (myalgia, stiffness, cramps). The data from these two control groups has been gathered previously in a different study. The investigators will also compare this to patients suffering from Brody disease who were previously measured in a different study. Muscle relaxation will be evaluated in fresh and fatigued finger flexor muscles. The main outcome of this study is the peak relaxation rate normalized to the peak force preceding relaxation. The final outlook of this research is to evaluate whether muscle relaxation studied with TMS, can be used for different myopathies as a diagnostic tool, to monitor disease progression, and to study the effects of different interventions (e.g. medication, exercise).

The aim of the project is to develop new Magnetic Resonance (MR) imaging techniques for better diagnosis and monitoring of patients with muscular disorders. Muscle quality in patients with Late Onset Pompe Disease (Acid Maltase Deficiency type 2) and in patients with Myotonica Dystrophy will be evaluated, by determining muscle strength in relation to muscle size and muscle strength in relations to fat-muscle ratio.

Study to focus on the defining and managing the neuropsychological abnormalities of myotonic dystrophy and to find out if the neuropsychological abnormalities have any correlation with changes seen on Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

The aim of this study is to determine the factors associated with alveolar hypoventilation in terms of cognitive impairment, daytime sleepiness, respiratory function, nocturnal respiratory events This evaluation will clarify the clinical phenotypes of respiratory disease in myotonic steinert dystrophy.