Becker Muscular Dystrophy Overview
Learn About Becker Muscular Dystrophy
Becker muscular dystrophy is an inherited disorder that involves slowly worsening muscle weakness of the legs and pelvis.
Benign pseudohypertrophic muscular dystrophy; Becker's dystrophy
Becker muscular dystrophy is very similar to Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The main difference is that it gets worse at a much slower rate and it is less common. This disease is caused by a mutation in the gene that encodes a protein called dystrophin.
The disorder is passed down through families (inherited). Having a family history of the condition raises your risk.
Becker muscular dystrophy occurs in about 3 to 6 out of every 100,000 births. The disease is found mostly in boys.
Females rarely develop symptoms. Males will develop symptoms if they inherit the defective gene. Symptoms most often appear in boys between ages 5 and 15, but may begin later.
Muscle weakness of the lower body, including the legs and pelvis area, slowly gets worse, causing:
- Difficulty walking that gets worse over time; by age 25 to 30, the person is usually unable to walk
- Frequent falls
- Difficulty getting up from the floor and climbing stairs
- Difficulty with running, hopping, and jumping
- Loss of muscle mass
- Toe walking
- Muscle weakness in the arms, neck, and other areas is not as severe as in the lower body
Other symptoms may include:
- Breathing problems
- Cognitive problems (these do not get worse over time)
- Fatigue
- Loss of balance and coordination
There is no known cure for Becker muscular dystrophy. However there are many new medicines currently undergoing clinical testing that show significant promise in treating the disease. The current goal of treatment is to control symptoms to maximize the person's quality of life. Some providers prescribe steroids to help keep a patient walking for as long as possible.
Activity is encouraged. Inactivity (such as bed rest) can make the muscle disease worse. Physical therapy may be helpful to maintain muscle strength. Orthopedic appliances such as braces and wheelchairs may improve movement and self-care.
Abnormal heart function may require the use of a pacemaker or defibrillator.
Genetic counseling may be recommended. Daughters of a man with Becker muscular dystrophy will very likely carry the defective gene and could pass it on to their sons.
Christopher Walker is an Internal Medicine provider in New York, New York. Dr. Walker and is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Becker Muscular Dystrophy. His top areas of expertise are Hepatitis C, Hepatitis, Hepatitis A, and Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.
David Younger is a Neurologist in New York, New York. Dr. Younger and is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Becker Muscular Dystrophy. His top areas of expertise are Lyme Disease, Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy, Primary Lateral Sclerosis, and Cramp-Fasciculation Syndrome.
Icahn School Of Medicine At Mount Sinai
Kali Hopkins is a Cardiologist and a Pediatric Cardiologist in New York, New York. Dr. Hopkins and is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Becker Muscular Dystrophy. Her top areas of expertise are Congenital Cardiovascular Shunt, Total Anomalous Pulmonary Venous Return, Pulmonary Vein Stenosis, Congenital Heart Disease (CHD), and Angioplasty.
You can ease the stress of the illness by joining a muscular dystrophy support group where members share common experiences and problems.
Becker muscular dystrophy leads to slowly worsening disability. However, the amount of disability varies. Some people may need a wheelchair. Others may only need to use walking aids such as canes or braces.
Lifespan is most often shortened if there are heart and breathing problems.
Complications may include:
- Heart-related problems such as cardiomyopathy
- Lung failure
- Pneumonia or other respiratory infections
- Increasing and permanent disability that leads to decreased ability to care for self, decreased mobility
Contact your provider if:
- Symptoms of Becker muscular dystrophy appear
- A person with Becker muscular dystrophy develops new symptoms (particularly fever with cough or breathing difficulties)
- You are planning to start a family and you or other family members have been diagnosed with Becker muscular dystrophy
Genetic counseling may be advised if there is a family history of Becker muscular dystrophy.
Summary: This research study is testing whether an experimental drug, called SRD-001, is safe and helps the weakened heart of patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) regain its ability to effectively pump blood to the rest of the body. SRD-001 is a form of gene therapy. The goal of SRD-001 gene therapy is to provide the heart muscle cells with extra copies of the SERCA2a gene so that they can produ...
Summary: The purpose of this research is (1) to identify disease specific walking-related digital biomarkers of disease severity, and (2) monitor longitudinal changes in natural environments, for extended periods of time, in DMD and SMA.
Published Date: March 31, 2024
Published By: Joseph V. Campellone, MD, Department of Neurology, Cooper Medical School at Rowan University, Camden, NJ. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.
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Manzur AY. Muscular dystrophies In: Kliegman RM, St. Geme JW, Blum NJ, et al, eds. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 22nd ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2025:chap 649.
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