Chapter 20 - Neuromuscular Disorders

Abstract

Neuromuscular disorders such as muscular dystrophy, spinal muscle atrophies, and Parkinson’s disease manifest symptoms such as alterations to muscle tone, rigidity, dystonia, and myalgia. Because of the strong modifications to muscle activity and therefore to the alterations of the biomechanical environment, spinal disorders such as scoliosis and sagittal imbalance are relatively frequent among patients suffering from these diseases. In older patients, such as those suffering from Parkinson’s disease, concomitant degenerative disorders such as poor bone quality further complicate the clinical management. Today biomechanical research on spinal disorders associated with neuromuscular diseases is almost nonexistent. This chapter discusses the current data on spinal disorders, deformities, and surgical treatments relative to neuromuscular scoliosis that is typically associated with muscular dystrophy, spinal muscle atrophies, cerebral palsy, and Parkinson’s disease, with special emphasis on the possible postoperative complications related to biomechanical factors.