[Thyrotoxic myopathy (clinical picture, diagnosis and principles of treatment)]

A series of 263 patients with thyrotoxic myopathy (TM) (47 males and 216 females) were studied. A total of 151 patients were investigated by the author and 112 case reports were taken from the literature. New clinical peculiarities of TM were detected. The author presented a quantitative assessment of the incidence, degree of weakness and atrophy of individual muscles, described the topography of muscular lesions at different phases of the development of thyrotoxicosis and myopathy. He also proposed an original formula of muscular weakness and atrophy which makes it possible to identify myopathy in its initial stage even when there are no evident clinical manifestations of thyrotoxicosis. Thus, a new method of early diagnosis of TM on the basis of topography of muscular lesions and other clinical characteristics is proposed. This method provides reliable evidence for the preliminary diagnosis of thyrotoxicosis. In addition to thyrotoxicosis correction the question is raised about the pathogenetic treatment of TM.