Abstract
We report the clinical, histological and genetic findings in 10 families (19 patients) presenting mutations in the valosin-containing protein (VCP). The mean age at onset was 42
years. The clinical pattern was characterized by an early involvement of the proximal upper limbs with scapular winging. Axial and lower limb muscles were often affected, whereas facial, oculobulbar muscles were spared. Ten patients were wheelchair bound after a mean disease course of 9
years and six patients required canes for walking. Two patients required mechanically assisted ventilation and seven patients had reduced vital capacity. There was no cardiac involvement. Paget’s disease of bone was observed in eight patients and cognitive impairment in nine patients. Seven patients died as a consequence of weakness and respiratory distress. Muscle biopsy showed rimmed vacuolar myopathy. Genetic analysis revealed missense heterozygous mutations mostly located in exon 5 of the
VCP gene, four of which were not previously reported. We observed intrafamilial and interfamilial variability in terms of severity, distribution of weakness and presence or not of Paget’s disease or cognitive impairment.