Abstract
The term ‘benign myopathies of childhood’ is used to describe a group of disorders characterized clinically by the ‘floppy infant syndrome’. They are sometimes referred to as congenital myopathies, although in some instances they may not cause symptoms until later in childhood or even until adult life. These disorders usually have a genetic basis, although this may not be apparent. In most patients weakness is mild or moderate, and marked wasting is unusual. These disorders are usually only slowly progressive and, in some, improvement may occur with increasing maturity (Dubowitz, 1978; 1980). There are many causes of the floppy infant syndrome (Table 7.1) but many of these are best reclassified according to their underlying cause, e.g. as meta olic myopathies, leaving a group of ill-understood, relatively benign myopathies of childhood onset characterized principally by the changes found in the muscle biopsy (Table 7.2).
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Swash, M., Schwartz, M.S. (1984). ‘Benign’ myopathies of childhood. In: Biopsy Pathology of Muscle. Biopsy Pathology Series. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-3402-4_7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-3402-4_7
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