Benign congenital hypotonia
Overview
A rare condition where an infant has a severe lack of muscle tone which progressively improves and usually disappears within 10 years.
Symptoms
* Severe muscle weakness * Depressed reflexes
Diagnosis
A diagnosis of hypotonia is sometimes considered a form of muscular dystrophy or cerebral palsy, depending on the symptoms and the doctor. If the cause of the hypotonia is thought to lie in the brain, then it might be classified as a cerebral palsy.
Treatment
There is currently no known treatment or cure for most (or perhaps all) causes of hypotonia, and objective manifestations can be life long. The outcome in any particular case of hypotonia depends largely on the nature of the underlying disease. In some cases, muscle tone improves over time, or the patient may learn or devise coping mechanisms that enable him to overcome the most disabling aspects of the disorder