Muscle weakness
{{{Name|Muscle weakness}}}
[[Image:{{{Image}}}|190px|center|]]
{{{Caption|}}}
|
| ICD-10
| M62.8
|
| ICD-O:
| {{{ICDO}}}
|
| ICD-9
| 728.87 (728.9 before 10/01/03)
|
| OMIM
| }}}
|
| MedlinePlus
| }}}
|
| eMedicine
| }}}
|
| DiseasesDB
| }}}
|
Muscle weakness (or "lack of strength") is the inability to exert force with ones musclesto the degree that would be expected given the individual's general physical fitness. A test of strength is often used during a diagnosisof a muscular disorder before the etiologycan be identified.
The term subsumes two other more specific terms, true weakness and perceived weakness.
- True weakness (or "objective weakness") describes a condition where the instantaneous force exerted by the muscles is less than would be expected. For instance, if a patient suffers from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis(ALS), motor neuronsare damaged and can no longer stimulate the muscles to exert normal force.
- Perceived weakness (or "subjective weakness") describes a condition where it seems to the patient that more effort than normal is required to exert a given amount of force. For instance, a person with chronic fatigue syndromemay struggle to climb a set of stairs when feeling especially fatigued, but if their muscle strength is objectively measured (eg, the maximum weight they can press with their legs) it is essentially normal.
In some conditions such as myasthenia gravismuscle strength is normal when resting, but true weakness occurs after the muscle has been subjected to exercise.
Associated conditions
This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.
- Muscular dystrophy
- [Charcot-Marie-Tooth]
- Botulism
See also
- Fatigue (physical)
- Asthenia
- Paresis
- Debility
- Cataplexy
- Hypotonia
External links
- FP Notebook
- MedlinePlus/NIH
- AllRefer
Categories: Muscle stubs| Incomplete lists| Symptoms
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
It uses material from the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muscle+weakness Wikipedia article Muscle weakness.
| 
