Cramps

Abstract

Twenty years ago, Brian McArdle discovered a disorder of muscle-energy metabolism (later identified as phosphorylase deficiency) in a young man with exertional muscle cramps. This event cast a certain glamor on the humdrum muscle cramp, and there has since been widespread medical attention to the symptom. Most patients who complain of cramps do not suffer from metabolic muscle disease, and there are so many other causes of cramps, spasms and stiffness that the subject has become confusing. In this survey we hope to provide an orderly basis for understanding the different ways in which cramps occur, recognizing that there are. ©1971, Massachusetts Medical Society. All rights reserved.