Abbreviations
- ACE
- angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE inhibitors are used to control cardiac problems and high blood pressure)
- ADHD
- attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
- ADL
- activities of daily living
- AFOs
- ankle-foot orthoses (splints which are used to control tightness at the ankles)
- ALT
- alanine aminotransferase
- AST
- aspartate aminotransferase
- BP
- blood pressure
- CDC
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (the major public health body in the USA)
- CK
- creatine kinase (an enzyme found at high levels in the blood in DMD and other forms of muscular dystrophy)
- DEXA
- dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (a test done to look at the strength of the bones). Also referred to as DXA
- DMD
- Duchenne muscular dystrophy
- ECG
- electrocardiogram (the main test done to look at heart rhythm)
- FVC
- forced vital capacity (a test of breathing muscle strength)
- GC
- glucocorticoid
- IV
- intravenous (into the vein)
- KAFOs
- knee-ankle-foot orthoses (long leg splints that can be used especially over the period that walking is becoming impossible and thereafter to help prolong walking)
- kg
- kilogram
- L
- litre
- LVEF
- left ventricular ejection fraction (one of the main tests of heart function)
- mg
- milligram
- nmol
- nanomoles
- NSAIDs
- non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (which are used for pain relief, the most common of which are ibuprofen, diclofenac and naproxen)
- OCD
- obsessive-compulsive disorder
- TA
- achilles tendon
- TB
- tuberculosis
- VOCA
- voice output communication aid
Information based on consensus statement (published in January 2010)
