Classification and diagnosis of myopathies - An update

Myopathies are uncommon, even within neurological practice. It is unreasonable to expect general neurologists to have a detailed knowledge of rare conditions that they might only encounter once in a lifetime. But, they must have sufficient knowledge to recognise the basic nature of the problem, to initiate appropriate and avoid inappropriate investigations, and to then point the patient in the right direction for further management. Armed with a simple classification system and a few pointers to the clinical approach, such patients should present an enjoyable, rather than nerve-wracking, challenge