Maastricht University Medical Centre+

The Neuromuscular Centre Maastricht UMC+ is a tertiary referral centre for neuromuscular diseases. The hospital serves as the central provider in the Netherlands for preimplantation genetic diagnosis.

The centre brings particular expertise with regard to myotonic dystrophy, small fibre neuropathy and cognition in Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy.

Myotonic dystrophy is a hereditary multi-organ disease, requiring complex multidisciplinary care, including neurology, genetics, cardiology, pulmonology, ophthalmology, ENT, and rehabilitation. The mental effects of the disease require an active follow-up and management of patients, as well as the possibility for a well-structured inpatient diagnostic evaluation. The centre is dedicated to offer an adequate diagnosis, and rigorous follow-up and management of patients, and has specific expertise in the cardiac complications and the cognitive and behavioural effects of the disease. A multidisciplinary team, including paramedics, are involved in daily care for this patient group. The centre of expertise works closely together with the Radboud UMC within the Myotonic Dystrophy Centre the Netherlands.

Patients with possible small fibre neuropathy are referred to MUMC for diagnostic services, including genetic analyses, for treatment, and for participation in treatment trials. Patients are referred from the entire Netherlands, and occasionally from other European countries (Belgium, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Israel) and the United States. The centre works closely together with centres of expertise from Milan (Prof. Giuseppe Lauria) and New Haven (prof. Stephen Waxman).

For patients with Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy, MUMC offers dedicated expertise on neurocognition and behaviour, and forms the Duchenne network Netherlands together with the centres of expertise of Radboud UMC and LUMC.

There is a close and important link between research and clinical activities and we actively keep patients informed of new advances in research.

We are involved in the development of modern clinical outcome measures, and were the principal investigators in a large multicentre study on outcome measures in inflammatory neuropathies (PeriNoMS study), that  resulted in international consensus on outcome measures to be used in clinical practice and in future trials.