Response to vecuronium in a patient with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy

Abstract

Increased sensitivity to vecuronium has been noted in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. We report the response to vecuronium in a patient with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD), an autosomal dominant disorder with an incidence of 10-20 cases per million. In this patient, sensitivity to an initial dose of vecuronium (0.02 + 0.08 mg kg-1) was normal, but recovery was faster and the effect of incremental doses of vecuronium (0.02 mg kg-1) was less than expected. Onset time and 25% recovery of T1/T0 after the intubating dose of vecuronium were 240 s and 22 min, respectively. Recovery index (spontaneous recovery of T1/T0 from 25% to 75%) was 9 min.