Which dystrophy primarily affects hip and shoulder muscles (the proximal girdle)?

• A. Limb-Girdle Muscular Dystrophy
• B. Becker Muscular Dystrophy
• C. Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy
• D. Myotonic Dystrophy

Answer: (A)

This question is about where the muscle weakness tends to hit first. Limb-girdle muscular dystrophy is defined by predominant weakness and wasting of the hip and shoulder girdle muscles—the proximal girdles. That pattern fits the description of “proximal girdle” dystrophy most directly, since the hip and shoulder areas are the primary targets early on.

In contrast, Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy are dystrophinopathies that typically begin in childhood with proximal weakness but have a different inheritance pattern (X-linked) and a broader clinical course that includes cardiomyopathy and other features. Myotonic dystrophy involves myotonia (delayed muscle relaxation) and often multisystem effects, with weakness that isn’t restricted to the proximal girdles in the same defining way. So the dystrophy that best matches the idea of predominant hip and shoulder (proximal girdle) involvement is limb-girdle muscular dystrophy.