Muscular Distrophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Muscular Distrophy - Essay Example The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) has defined muscular dystrophies (MD) as â€Å"a group of more than 30 genetic diseases characterized by progressive weakness and degeneration of the skeletal muscles that control movement. Some forms of MD are seen in infancy or childhood, while others may not appear until middle age or later. The disorders differ in terms of the distribution and extent of muscle weakness (some forms of MD also affect cardiac muscle), age of onset, rate of progression, and pattern of inheritance† (NINDS, 2010, par. 3). There are various types with corresponding clinical manifestations and therapy for MDs. In this regard, the essay aims to compare and contrast, one particular type, the Duchenne MD with another type, the Facioscapulohumeral MD. The causes, pathology and treatment would be discussed and evaluated in light of the two identified MDs. The Duchenne MD is considered the most common form of MD afflicting children, identified to occur in 1 out of 3,500 live male births (London, et.al. 2007, 1791). This type of MD, likewise known as pseudohyperthophy â€Å"refers to enlargement of muscles as a result of their infiltration with fatty tissue† (London, et.al. 2007, 1791). The disorder usually appears within the first three to four years of the child’s development. In a research conducted by Bogdanovich, et.al. (2005), the authors averred that â€Å"DMD is characterized by progressive and severe muscle loss that leads to loss of ambulation, with those affected often becoming wheelchair dependent toward the end of the first decade of life. The disease is caused by mutations in the DMD gene resulting in quantitative and/or qualitative disturbances in expression of the gene product, dystrophin† (par. 1). The symptoms for Duchenne MD include any or a combination of the following: â€Å"fatigue, mental retardation (possible, but does not worsen over time), muscle weakness, and

Choose either 100 best poems for Children or Peter Pan Essay

Choose either 100 best poems for Children or Peter Pan - Essay Example Peter Pan; or the Boy who Wouldn’t Grow Up, when first staged in 1904, was received with almost unanimous enthusiasm. The critics though appreciative were ‘a little cautious and puzzled’ (Watson, 2009, p. 143); and not surprisingly so. Peter Pan was no ordinary children’s tale. With its queer mixture of childlike fantasy and very adult dark humour, even the first, spectacular viewing of the play must have hinted at the layers of subliminal messages it contained. Peter Pan evidently deserved further penetration. The Peter Pan myth, as indeed it grew to become, has been interpreted with various perspectives. The Spectacle used in the play, the psychological character of Peter and Wendy’s relationship, the biographical link to Barrie’s own experiences with the Llewellyn Davies boys – have all been scrutinised and commented upon. But the most prominent observation the play seems to make, and Barrie through it, is on the divide separating ch ildren and grown-ups. What does Peter Pan say about childhood and adulthood? Or to divide it further, on girlhood and boyhood? Does this commentary hold ground a hundred years after its inception? In what ways have its interpretations changed? Children are known (and often rebuked) for asking too many questions: what better way to begin such an exploration than to try and answer these? Barrie’s treatment of adult males in his play might be a good place to begin. Neither of the two significant men characters, Mr. Darling and Captain Hook, is portrayed charitably. Mr. Darling has the trappings of a characteristic patriarchal head, but that is all. He holds no real authority, either at the workplace ‘where he sits on a stool all day, as fixed as a postage stamp’ (Barrie, 2008 [1904], Act I) or at home; as is evident in the scene about the medicine between him and Michael in Act I. Without being too simplistic, one can sum up Mr. Darling as a fussy man, too anxious about social propriety and not