Electrocardiographic studies in female carriers of Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

The incidence of electrocardiographic features "typical" for the Duchenne progressive muscular dystrophy (PMD) was investigated in 191 carriers: 136 mothers and 55 daughers. The typical PMD pattern was seen in 6.6% of the mothers, and a pattern similar to that observed in PMD in 2.9%. Among daughters of carriers the percentages were 16.4 and 1.8 respectively. The daughters obviously belong to a much lower age bracket (average 13.3 years) and therefore must be followed for the eventual disappearance of the "juvenile" ECG features, which, in this group, may reduce the incidence of the typical PMD electrocardiograms. The need for more thorough clinical appraisal of the myocardium in carriers is emphasized, especially in those with the "typical" PMD electrocardiograms, with the help of hemodynamic investigations.