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Multicenter Study
. 2015 Mar;135(3):513-21.
doi: 10.1542/peds.2014-2044. Epub 2015 Feb 16.

Prevalence of Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophies in the United States

Paul A Romitti  1 , Yong Zhu  2 , Soman Puzhankara  2 , Katherine A James  3 , Sarah K Nabukera  2 , Gideon K D Zamba  2 , Emma Ciafaloni  4 , Christopher Cunniff  5 , Charlotte M Druschel  6 , Katherine D Mathews  2 , Dennis J Matthews  3 , F John Meaney  5 , Jennifer G Andrews  5 , Kristin M Caspers Conway  2 , Deborah J Fox  7 , Natalie Street  8 , Melissa M Adams  8 , Julie Bolen  8 ; MD STARnet
Affiliations
Multicenter Study

Prevalence of Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophies in the United States

Paul A Romitti et al. Pediatrics. 2015 Mar.

Erratum in

Abstract

Objective: To estimate prevalence of childhood-onset Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophies (DBMD) in 6 sites in the United States by race/ethnicity and phenotype (Duchenne muscular dystrophy [DMD] or Becker muscular dystrophy [BMD]).

Methods: In 2002, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention established the Muscular Dystrophy Surveillance, Tracking, and Research Network (MD STARnet) to conduct longitudinal, population-based surveillance and research of DBMD in the United States. Six sites conducted active, multiple-source case finding and record abstraction to identify MD STARnet cases born January 1982 to December 2011. We used cross-sectional analyses to estimate prevalence of DBMD per 10 000 boys, ages 5 to 9 years, for 4 quinquennia (1991-1995, 1996-2000, 2001-2005, and 2006-2010) and prevalence per 10 000 male individuals, ages 5 to 24 years, in 2010. Prevalence was also estimated by race/ethnicity and phenotype.

Results: Overall, 649 cases resided in an MD STARnet site during ≥1 quinquennia. Prevalence estimates per 10 000 boys, ages 5 to 9 years, were 1.93, 2.05, 2.04, and 1.51, respectively, for 1991-1995, 1996-2000, 2001-2005, and 2006-2010. Prevalence tended to be higher for Hispanic individuals than non-Hispanic white or black individuals, and higher for DMD than BMD. In 2010, prevalence of DBMD was 1.38 per 10 000 male individuals, ages 5 to 24 years.

Conclusions: We present population-based prevalence estimates for DBMD in 6 US sites. Prevalence differed by race/ethnicity, suggesting potential cultural and socioeconomic influences in the diagnosis of DBMD. Prevalence also was higher for DMD than BMD. Continued longitudinal surveillance will permit us to examine racial/ethnic and socioeconomic differences in treatment and outcomes for MD STARnet cases.

Keywords: Becker muscular dystrophy; Duchenne muscular dystrophy; ethnicity; population surveillance; prevalence.

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Conflict of interest statement

POTENTIAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST: The other authors have indicated they have no potential conflicts of interest relevant to this article to disclose.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Prevalence estimates per 10 000 male individuals by quinquennium with and without possible and asymptomatic cases, identified by MD STARnet, 1991–2010.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Prevalence estimates for 2010 per 10 000 male individuals by age group, with and without possible and asymptomatic cases, identified by MD STARnet, 1991–2010.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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