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To learn more about our privacy policy Click hereWhen we talk about muscle weakness we refer to the decrease or reduction of the muscle strength of a particular muscle or a certain muscle group.
There are many and varied causes of muscle weakness and the treatment will depend on the specific origin.
For muscle movement to occur voluntarily, a signal is generated in the brain and follows a specific pathway to the muscle for movement. According to these topographic levels, the cause of muscle weakness can be located at 4 different levels:
In the same way, the approach is different, if the condition is located in an isolated or specific muscle or muscle group, or it is generalized weakness.
Here we can differentiate many causes
Among the most common causes of generalized muscle weakness are: hypotrophy or atrophy due to long periods of lack of movement, disorders caused by drugs or electrolytes or alcoholism.
In the case of localized muscle weakness, the list is longer and includes a large number of different pathologies.
At this point, medical evaluation is essential to be able to identify the origin of the problem and establish a specific treatment.
Muscle weakness can be classified according to its severity in 4 levels.
In this sense, disorders associated with muscle weakness, which is the objective loss of muscle strength, must be differentiated from terms such as asthenia and fatigue.
We speak of asthenia when there is a feeling of fatigue without lack of muscle strength. Fatigue is the inability to continue a sustained activity, nor is it objective muscle weakness.
There are clinical pictures that present with asthenia or fatigue and additionally muscle weakness. This generates a lot of confusion, because in the course of the same disease variable degrees of muscle weakness associated with fatigue or asthenia, among other symptoms, can be seen.
Causes of primary muscle weakness
Endocrinological causes:
Endocrinological causes usually present with many symptoms in different organs, so their diagnosis is made through physical examination and laboratory determination with hormonal stimulation tests or direct measurement of certain hormones.
They tend to improve after starting treatment, either hormonal or surgical restoration. In many cases they require lifelong treatment unless it is resolved surgically.
Neurological causes:
Muscle diseases:
Rheumatological causes, of autoimmune origin, that improve with immunosuppressive treatment or steroids
Intoxication: it is necessary to determine the blood levels of the toxin, limit the exposure and apply treatment, they are usually reversible.
Infectious causes:
There are a number of viruses and infectious agents that can cause muscle weakness. The clinical presentations vary according to the infectious agent involved and the diagnosis is made basically when there are other signs than the underlying disease or the antecedent of the recent infectious process is known
Pharmacological causes: proper questioning may rule out the possible relationship of drugs or their combinations in patients with generalized muscle weakness. This background should be investigated quite carefully. Here are some of the medications involved:
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