use of a device that will assist the patient with breathing, especially patients that have breathing problems arise at night. While the patient is losing the ability to ambulate the physical therapy team will first provide adaptive equipment such as walker or crutches to keep the patient walking. If these do not work anymore the patient will be instructed with the use of a wheelchair. They will also be taught proper posture techniques to prevent the formation of scoliosis that often accompanies the use of a wheelchair. As the patient gets more severe and has more trouble with certain things such as getting from a wheelchair to bed, switching positions in bed, or getting up from the ground the physical therapy team will provide education on how to go about these complications. The therapists may also imply the use of orthoses in order to correct things such as foot drop and provide more time ambulating, and not in a wheelchair. Orthoses may increase the ability to ambulate for an…show more content… There had not been experimentation into muscle transplantation. In 1990 there were healthy muscle cells taken from another individual, then injected into a person with MD. They were optimistic that maybe these would cause good muscle cell growth. Researches used a hormone called insulin growth factor 1 (IGF-1) on rats with MD. This injected hormone showed the enhancement of voluntary muscle, new formation of good muscle cells, and generally stopped atrophy in the rats. Researchers are hopeful to maybe carry this over into studies with actual people. Also with mice there are studies going on to use the proteins Myostatin, and Utrophin. The intended use of Myostatin would be to prevent muscle deterioration, which in being studied in rats with MD. Utrophin is similar to Dystrophin and is trying to be put into drugs that would help decrease MD symptoms
