Weakness

Weakness: Common Causes

Measurable weakness may result from a variety of conditions including metabolic, neurologic, primary muscular diseases, and toxic disorders.

METABOLIC

• Addison's disease
• Thyrotoxicosis

• Stroke (often localized weakness)
• Bell's palsy (weakness of one side of the face)
• A nerve impingement syndrome such as a slipped disk in the spine
• Multiple sclerosis (may be localized)
• Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease; localized developing to generalized)
• Cerebral palsy (localized weakness associated with spasticity)
• Guillain-Barre syndrome

• Muscular dystrophy (Duchenne)
• Becker muscular dystrophy
• Myotonic dystrophy
• Dermatomyositis

• Organophosphate poisoning (insecticides, nerve gas)
• Paralytic shellfish poisoning
• Botulism

• Myasthenia gravis (an autoimmune disorder that interferes with the transmission of nerve impulses to muscle)
• Poliomyelitis ("polio" -- an infectious disease that damages motor neurons)
• Dermatomyositis/polymyositis (autoimmune diseases leading to proximal muscle weakness, muscle pain, and sometimes skin rashes)