Head Drop and Camptocormia
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EDITORIAL 1 J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry: first published as 10.1136/jnnp.73.1.1 on 1 July 2002. Downloaded from Head drop Table 2 Causes of ................................................................................... camptocormia Head drop and camptocormia Disorders Neuromuscular Motor neuron Amyotrophic lateral T Umapathi, V Chaudhry, D Cornblath, D Drachman, sclerosis17 18 J Griffin, R Kuncl Muscle IBM19 Nemaline myopathy20 ................................................................................... Facioscapulohumeral dystrophy The spectrum of bent spine disorders Parkinsonism Idiopathic21 Postencephalitic22 23 Villiusk encephalomyelitis24 ead ptosis (drop) results from Sodium valproate CASE A 25 weakness of the neck extensor, or toxicity An 80 year old man developed head pto- Idiopathic increased tone of the flexor mus- H sis insidiously over a period of few cles. It is characterised by marked anterior curvature or angulation of the weeks. A week before this he had an cervical spine and is associated with upper respiratory tract infection and also various neuromuscular (table 1) and experienced transient sharp pain over occasional nuclear sacs, target and tar- extrapyramidal disorders.12–15 Campto- the left and then the right shoulder. He getoid fibres as well as myopathic fea- cormia or the bent spine syndrome was had no diplopia, dysarthria, dysphagia, tures such as the presence of hyper- first described in hysterical soldiers in limb weakness, or fatiguability. Exam- trophic and split muscle fibres; a few 1915 by the French neurologist ination showed severe neck extensor necrotic, degenerating and regenerating Souques.16 Typically there is marked weakness, Medical Research Council fibres; increased internalised nuclei, and anterior curvature of the thoracolumbar (MRC) grade 2. Muscle strength was mild endomysial fibrosis. No type group- spine. In some patients the spine is normal in all other cranial, proximal, and ing was noted, but there was massive angulated forward, the arms propped distal limb muscles. Serum creatine type I predominance. No specific treat- against the thigh for support. More kinase (CK) was 362 IU/l (normal ment was offered. A few months later, he cases, all among soldiers, were reported 24–195) at presentation. Anti- started to improve. At follow up 2 years during the first and second world wars. acetylcholine receptor antibody was not later, he was able to keep his head up for These patients responded well to psycho- detected. Repetitive nerve stimulation of prolonged periods, especially in the therapy. Recently camptocormia arising right biceps, right nasalis and right sitting position. However, he was more symptomatic while standing. He re- as a result of weakness or abnormality in trapezius was normal. A therapeutic trial ported an overall 60% subjective im- the tone of the paraspinal muscles has of pyridostigmine failed. Cervical spine been described (table 2). In contrast with provement in neck strength and weak- MRI did not show significant compres- other skeletal disorders of the spine such ness had not progressed to other sion of the cord, roots, or any specific as kyphosis, the deformity in head ptosis muscles. changes in the paraspinal muscles. An and camptocormia is not fixed and is corrected by passive extension or lying in EMG disclosed positive sharp waves CASE B restricted to lower cervical paraspinal the supine position. It is not possible to A 74 year old man with diabetes mellitus http://jnnp.bmj.com/ straighten the neck or back voluntarily. muscles. To reduce confounding from and hyperlipidaemia (for which he had The evaluation of these disorders can neuropathic changes secondary to coex- been taking a statin for a few years) indeed be challenging and often no defi- istent age related spondylotic changes, complained of progressive anterior cur- nite diagnosis is made, as illustrated by the thoracic paraspinal muscle was cho- vature of the spine associated with four cases of head ptosis and campto- sen for biopsy. The pathological findings proximal limb weakness for few months. cormia seen by us at the Johns Hopkins were mixed. There were neuropathic On examination, he had moderately Hospital. changes such as angular atrophic fibres; severe anterior thoracolumbar curvature that could be extended passively. Diffuse on October 1, 2021 by guest. Protected copyright. weakness was present; proximal limb strength was MRC grade 4 and distal, Table 1 Neuromuscular causes for head ptosis 4+. Electrodiagnostic evaluation only Site of pathology Disorders showed evidence of an axonal polyneu- ropathy, consistent with diabetes. Serum Motor neuron Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis12 CK was persistently raised (367 IU/l). 3 Postpolio syndrome Spine MRI only showed mild degenera- Peripheral nerve Chronic inflammatory polyneuropathy4 Neuromuscular junction Myasthenia gravis12 tive changes. Anti-acetylcholine receptor Muscle antibody was not detected. Biopsy of the (a) Inflammatory Polymyositis12 rectus femoris showed increased fibre (b) Congenital/hereditary Inclusion body myositis2 size variability, necrosis, mild fibrosis, 56 Nemaline myopathy occasional red rimmed vacuoles, and one Mitochondrial myopathy7 Carnithine deficiency8 fibre which stained positive for ubiqui- Unspecified congenital myopathy9 tin, suggestive of inclusion body myosi- (c) Endocrine/metabolic Facioscapulohumeral dystrophy1 tis. However, inflammation or amyloid Cushing syndrome7 Hypothyroid myopathy10 Myotonic dystrophy with severe hypothyroidism2 ........................................ Severe hypokalaemic myopathy11 Abbreviations: CK, creatine kinase; MSA, multisystem atrophy; ALS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis www.jnnp.com 2 EDITORIAL J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry: first published as 10.1136/jnnp.73.1.1 on 1 July 2002. Downloaded from deposition were not seen. Despite stop- isolated antecollis causing forced anter- patients but other sensory abnormalities ping statin, his weakness continues to oflexion of the neck occurs in parkinso- are not prominent. The weakness is pro- progress and CK has remained raised nian syndromes. Rivest et al have docu- found in the neck extensors, and involve- (239 IU/L). mented antecollis in four of their ment of contiguous proximal muscles is necropsy proved cases of multisystem at most modest. The CK was normal in CASE C atrophy (MSA).12 13 The abnormality de- all but two patients. Katz at al2 reported A 59 year old woman presented with a 4 velops, sometimes in a subacute manner oedema-like changes and atrophy of the year history of progressive, painless over a period of weeks, in the late or neck extensor muscles on MRI. An EMG anterior curvature of the spine. She had middle stages of the disease. The neck of the paraspinal muscles was remark- a family history of facioscapulohumeral can only be passively and forcibly ex- able for the increased reports of sponta- muscular dystrophy but not of bent tended to its normal position with diffi- neous activity. Fibrillations were present spine. Examination showed campto- culty. None of the patients had convinc- in nine and positive sharp waves in one cormia along with scapular winging and ing dystonic spasms of the anterior neck out of the 15 patients for whom EMG mild facial and proximal weakness. Her muscles, although deeper muscles may data are available. Interestingly, such CK was at the upper limit of normal, 186 be involved. Speech, swallowing, and abnormalities were pronounced in the IU/l. An EMG showed short duration, upgaze deficits are often associated. lower cervical segments; and in one case small amplitude motor units with early Trials of botulinum toxin into both ster- reported by Katz et al,2 extended to the recruitment in the proximal muscles. nocleidomastoid muscles are ineffective midthoracic region. The motor unit Abnormal spontaneous activity was seen and response to levodopa generally action potentials in most cases are in the thoracic paraspinal muscles. No disappointing.12 13 Earlier case reports described as having short duration and decremental response to repetitive nerve have also documented the association small amplitude with early recruitment. stimulation was present. Spine MRI was between MSA and head drop.27–29 However, this has to be interpreted with unremarkable. 4q35 gene deletion, con- Yoshiyama et al14 published a series of caution as paraspinal motor unit action sistent with facioscapulohumeral mus- seven patients with parkinsonism exhib- potentials are generally small and may cular dystrophy, was detected. iting head drop, four of whom carried a have multiple turns even in normal indi- diagnosis of probable MSA. Although at viduals. EMG of the limb muscles is CASE D rest there was no anterior neck spasm, mostly unremarkable. The histology of A 63 year old woman developed slowly attempts to extend the head voluntarily limb muscles is normal or reveals mild progressive, painless thoracolumbar or passively was accompanied by con- non-specific myopathic changes such as stoop of about 30 degrees over 8 to 9 traction of the sternocleidomastoid mus- increased fibre size variability. In two of years. The deformity was not fixed and cles on surface EMG in all of these our cases there is some evidence of den- was worse in the standing position, patients. There was no correlation be- ervation. The paraspinal muscle biopsies better sitting, and minimal while lying tween the severity of the head ptosis and show less subtle but again non-specific down. There was no family history of parkinsonism. Three patients had im- changes