[Congenital muscular dystrophy. Report of 8 cases with evidence of central nervous system involvement].

Twelve patients with congenital muscular dystrophy (CMD) diagnosed by clinical and laboratorial criteria were submitted to CT scanning. Eight patients presented diffuse bilateral hypodensity of the white matter with predominance in the frontal lobes. These findings are indicative that CNS involvement in CMD is not confined to the Japanese population. Such involvement strongly suggests that the disease is transmitted by an autosomal recessive polymorphic gene responsible for the involvement of both CNS and skeletal muscle.