SUBSAHARAN REGIONAL TRAINING COURSE 11

ACCRA, GHANA 4-7 SEPTEMBER 2019

NEUROPATHIES AND MYOPATHIES

IN THE ADULT AND ELDERLY

AO CHARWAY-FELLI, MD, PhD

37 Military Hospital
 OUTLINE

• When will you see a patient with a neuropathy or myopathy?

• Definition of neuropathies and myopathies

• Causes of neuropathies and myopathies in the adult and elderly patient

• Examination of the patient presenting with neuropathies and myopathies

• Investigating a patient with neuropathies and myopathies

• Management
 Reasons for seeking medical attention

• PAIN

• Abnormal gait

• Falls

• Overt muscle weakness

• Muscle cramps

• Muscle stiffness
 WHAT IS PAIN?
Definitions of pain

• • Pain is a complex unpleasant phenomenon composed of sensory experiences

that include time, space, intensity, emotion, cognition, and motivation
• • Pain is an unpleasant or emotional experience originating in real or potential
damaged tissue
• • Pain is an unpleasant phenomenon that is uniquely experienced by each
individual; it cannot be adequately defined, identified, or measured by an observer
 Definition of Pain

International Association for the Study of Pain

• An unpleasant sensory and emotional experience arising from actual or

potential tissue damage or described in terms of such damage

• Sensory, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral components that are

interrelated with environmental, developmental, socio-cultural, and contextual
factors
 Neuropathy? Myopathy?
Features suggestive of neuropathy:
•Sensory loss may be present
•Fasciculations may be present
•There may be cranial nerve involvement
•There may be dysautonomia
 Definition of Neuropathy
• Generalized term including disorders of any cause affecting PNS

• May involve sensory nerves, motor nerves, or both

• May affect one nerve (mononeuropathy), several nerves together

(polyneuropathy) or several nerves not contiguous (Mononeuropathy
multiplex)

• Further classified into those that primarily affect the cell body (e.g.,
neuronopathy or ganglionopathy), myelin (myelinopathy), and the axon
(axonopathy)
 Most common causes
• Disease • Prevalence
• 11-41% (depending on duration, type, and control)
• Diabetes1 2
• 9-10%
• 7%
• Paraproteinaemia2 3
• 4%
• Alcohol misuse1 • 3.6%
• Renal failure1
• Vitamin B-12 deficiency1 • 16% (depending on the population studied, usually
much lower)
• HIV infection1
• 10-40% of different hospital series

• Chronic idiopathic axonal neuropathy4

BMJ 2010:341:c6100
 Patterns of neuropathy
• Mononeuropathy

• Multiple mononeuropathy

• Polyneuropathy
 Neuropathy? Myopathy?

Features suggestive of myopathy:

•The sensory supply should be preserved
•The reflexes should be preserved – can be absent in severe muscle disease
•Weakness predominantly proximal
•There should be no fasciculations
•There may be myocardial involvement (skeletal myopathies tend to be associated
with cardiomyopathy)
•The muscles involved may be painful and tender(as in myositis)
•There may be muscle contractures, requiring splints
 Neuropathy? Myopathy?
Muscle Tone Strength DTR Plantars sensation fasicualtion
bulk
UMN N  N   N -

Ant horn Prox  Prox   N +

cell wasting weakness

P nerve Distal  Distal Distal   rarely

wasting weakness 

NMJ N N fatigues N-   N -

Muscle selective     N -
 Causes of Neuropathies and Myopathies

• NEUROPATHIES • MYOPATHIES
– Inflammatory – Denervation
– Infectious – Dystrophies
– Hereditary – Ion Channel

– Acquired Toxic/Metabolic – Congenital

– Traumatic – Genetic Metabolic

– Neoplasms – Inflammatory
– Toxic
– Neuro-Muscular Junction
– Neoplasms
The clinical response to sensory nerve injury

Loss of function Disordered function

“- symptoms” “+ symptoms”

Sensory ↓ Vibration Paresthesias

“Large Fiber” ↓ Proprioception
Hyporeflexia
Sensory ataxia
Sensory ↓ Pain Dysesthesias
“Small Fiber” ↓ Temperature Allodynia
 The clinical response to motor nerve injury

Loss of function Disturbed function

“- symptoms” “+ symptoms”

Motor nerves Wasting Fasciculation

Large fibre Hypotonia Cramps
Weakness
Hyporeflexia
Orthopedic deformity
The clinical response to autonomic nerve injury

Loss of function Disturbed function

“- symptoms” “+ symptoms”

Autonomic nerves ↓ Sweating ↑ Sweating

Hypotension Hypertension
Urinary retention
Impotence
Vascular color changes
The 3 principal questions …

#1. Where is the lesion?

#2. What is the etiology?

#3. What is the treatment?

www.ama-assn.org/ ama/pub/category/7172.html
The patterns of peripheral neuropathy…

• Mononeuropathy?

• Polyneuropathy?
multiple nerves
contiguous
typically length dependent
(“stocking-glove”)

Polyneuropathy is common! 2.4%

(8% over 55 yr)

www.ama-assn.org/ ama/pub/category/7172.html
Pathogenic Mechanism of Peripheral Nerve
Damage
• Several changes are identified but are not disease specific:
– Segmental Degeneration

– Wallerian Degeneration

– Axonal Degeneration

• Myelin sheath is the most susceptible to damage. It can break

down as a primary process affecting Schwann Cells, myelin
itself, or secondarily to the diseases affecting axon.
 Mononeuropathy

• Focal involvement of a single nerve and implies a local

process:

• Direct trauma

• compression or entrapment

• vascular lesions

• neoplastic compression or infiltration

 Mononeuropathy multiplex
• simultaneous /sequential damage to multiple noncontiguous nerves.

• Ischemia caused by vasculitis

• Microangiopathy in diabetes mellitus

• Less common causes : Granulomatous, leukemic, or neoplastic infiltration,

Hansen's disease (leprosy) and sarcoidosis.
 Polyneuropathy

• Characterized by symmetrical, distal motor and sensory deficits that have

a graded increase in severity distally and by distal attenuation of reflexes,

• Rarely predominantly proximal:(E.g: acute intermittent porphyria).

• The sensory deficits generally follow a length-dependent stocking-glove

pattern
ACUTE INFLAMMATORY DEMYELINATING POLYNEUROPATHY
 Axonopathies

• By far the majority of the toxic, metabolic and endocrine causes

• NCVs: CMAPs ↓ 80% lower limit of normal w/o or min velocity or distal motor
latency change.

• Legs>> arms.

• EMG: Signs of denervation (acute, chronic) and reinnervation

 Myelinopathies
• Rarer than axonopathies
• Clues: hypertrophic nerves on exam (not usually found)

global arreflexia

weakness without wasting

motor >> sensory deficits

NCS can discriminate inherited from acquired

• NCS: Distal motor latency prolonged Conduction velocities slowed

May have conduction block

EMG: Reduced recruitment w/o much denervation

Clues for diagnosis
 Constitutional symptoms
•Weight loss, malaise, and anorexia.

• DM
• [HIV]
• hypothyroidism
• drug use
• chronic renal failure
• Vitamin B6 toxicity
• liver disease
• alcohol and dietary habits
• intestinal malabsorption

• malignancy

• connective tissue diseases

 Conditions Associated with
Painful Peripheral Neuropathy
• Diabetes and Pre-Diabetes
• Alcohol neuropathy
• Chemotherapy
– Platinum-based
• Paraproteinemia
• Vasculitis and Connective Tissue Diseases
• Heavy metals and other toxins
• HIV
• Amyloidosis
• Porphyria
 Proximal Symmetric Motor Polyneuropathies

– Guillain-Barré syndrome – Acute arsenic polyneuropathy

– Chronic inflammatory demyelinating – Lymphoma

polyradiculoneuropathy – Diphtheria
– Diabetes mellitus – HIV/AIDS
– Porphyria – Lyme disease
– Osteosclerotic myeloma – Hypothyroidism
– Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia – Vincristine (Oncovin, Vincosar PFS)
– Monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined toxicity
significance
 Cryptogenic (Idiopathic) Sensory and
Sensorimotor Polyneuropathy

• CSPN – diagnosis of exclusion

• 6th or 7th decade of life

• Distal numbness, tingling, often burning pain that begins in

feet and eventually involves the fingers and hands

• Both small and large fibre loss on neurological exam and EDx
 History

• The temporal course of a neuropathy varies, based on the etiology.

– With trauma or ischemic infarction, the onset will be acute, with the most severe
symptoms at onset.

– Inflammatory and some metabolic neuropathies have a subacute course

extending over days to weeks.

– A chronic course over weeks to months is the hallmark of most toxic and metabolic
neuropathies.
 History

• A chronic, slowly progressive neuropathy over many years occurs with most
hereditary neuropathies or with chronic inflammatory demyelinating
polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP).

• Neuropathies with a relapsing and remitting course include CIDP, acute

porphyria, Refsum's disease, hereditary neuropathy with liability to pressure
palsies (HNPP), familial brachial plexus neuropathy, and repeated episodes of
toxin exposure.
 History

• Ischemic neuropathies often have pain as a prominent feature.

• Small-fiber neuropathies often present with burning pain, lightning-like or

lancinating pain, aching, or uncomfortable paresthesias (dysesthesias).
 History

• Peripheral neuropathy can present as restless leg syndrome.

• Proximal involvement may result in difficulty climbing stairs, getting out of a

chair, lifting and bulbar involvement can also be seen
 History

• The clinical assessment should include:

– careful past medical history, looking for systemic diseases that can be associated with
neuropathy, such as diabetes or hypothyroidism.
Descriptives in neuropathies
 Medications Causing Neuropathies
❑AXONAL • Alfa interferon ❑DEMYELINATING
• Vincristine • Dapsone • Amiodarone
• Paclitaxel • Phenytoin • Chloroquine
• Nitrous oxide • Cimetidine • Suramin
• Colchicine • Disulfiram • Gold
• Isoniazid • Chloroquine
• Hydralazine • Ethambutol
• Metronidazole • Amitriptyline ❑NEURONOPATHY
• Pyridoxine • Thalidomide
• Didanosine • Cisplatin
• Lithium • Pyridoxine
 Treatment

• Medical management

• – Analgesics

• – antiepileptic drugs, including gabapentin, phenytoin, and carbamazepine

• – some classes of antidepressants, including tricyclics such as amitriptyline.

• – local anesthetics such as lidocaine or topical patches/ Capsaicin

• containing lidocaine

• – Codeine/oxycodone
 Myopathies

• Neuromuscular disorder entity in which muscle weakness is the

predominant symptom occurs because of Muscle fibre
dysfunction.
 Incidence
• Worldwide incidence of all inheritable myopathies is about 14%

• • Overall incidence of muscular dystrophy is about 63 per 1 million.

• • Worldwide incidence of inflammatory myopathies is about 5–10 per 100,000

people.

• More common in women

• • Corticosteroid myopathy is the most common endocrine myopathy and

endocrine disorders

• are more common in women

• • Incidence of metabolic myopathies – increasing

 Symptoms of myopathy

• Muscle pain and fatigue; exercise intolerance • – Contractures, tight Achilles tendons

• • Proximal and symmetric weakness • • Myopathic face

• – Waddling gait; difficulty of rising from • • Muscle atrophy; pseudohypertrophy

• sitting, climbing stairs; Gower’s sign • • Myotonia

• – Hyperextension of the knee • • Tendon reflexes are normal or depressed

• – Increased lordosis of the lumbar spine,

scoliosis
 Clinical Examination

• Thorough clinical examination!

• Observation – look for muscle atrophy, deformities

• Strength testing

• Functional testing
– – Stand up from a chair

– – Walk

– – Step up on a low stool

• REFLEXES and SENSATION

 Types of muscle diseases

Hereditary muscle diseases Acquired muscle diseases

– Denervation atrophy – Inflammatory myopathies

– Muscle dystrophies – Endocrine and toxic myopathies

– Muscle channelopathies – Infectious muscle diseases

– Mitochondrial myopathies

– Metabolic myopathies
 Types of myopathies

• Inflammatory Myopathies • – Fasioscapulohumeral

• – Polymyositis • – Oculopharyngeal

• – Dermatomyositis • – Emery – Dreifuss

• – Inclusion body myositis • – Distal (Welander)

• – Viral • • Myotonic Syndromes

• • Muscular dystrophies • – Myotonic dystrophy

• – Duchenne muscular • – Inherited

• – Limb-girdle • – Schwarz-Jampel

• – Congenital • – Drug-induced
 Endocrine myopathies

• Thyrotoxic myopathies

• Cushing syndrome and steroid myopathy

• Myopathy associated with parathyroid disorders.

 Toxic myopathies

• Myotonic disorders • Inflammatory myopathy

• Necrotizing myopathies • Autophagic myopathy

• Acute muscle necrosis • Focal myopathy

• Mitochontrial myopathy • Envenomation myopathy

• Hypokalemic myopathy
Muscle Channelopathies
 TREATMENT

o There is no single treatment for myopathy.

o Treatment of the symptoms to specific cause – targeting treatments.

o Drug therapy

o Physical therapy

o Bracing for support,

o Surgery

o Massage
 TAKE HOME POINTS

• THERE IS NO SUBSTITUTE TO A THOROUGH INTERVIEW AND

EXAMINATION

• The examination is targeted to differentiate between nerve or muscle

dysfunction

• Treatment is dependent on the cause – the underlying pathology needs to be

addressed – often the management is only symptomatic.