Synonyms
clonus, spasm
Frequency
Everybody has probably had simple muscle cramps at night. Children are less likely to have muscle cramps, while young adults and older patients are more likely to have night-time cramps. The distribution of smooth muscle cramps is difficult to visualize and corresponds to the occurrence of gastrointestinal infections, bronchial asthma, colic with gallstones and kidney stones.
About 40-50% of adolescent women complain of hormone-induced cramps. About 400,000 to 800,000,000 people are affected by neurological cramps. However, the number of unreported cases is very high for the individual types of cramps, since not every cramp requires treatment and does not lead patients to a doctor.
Symptoms
Cramps of the striated musculature lead to a thickening of the affected area, sometimes combined with very strong pulling pain. This also leads to a functional limitation of the affected muscles. However, these limitations are usually not as severe, because other muscle groups can take over the task of the spastic muscles.
Cramps of the smooth muscles of the bronchial tubes can be accompanied by shortness of breath, while cramps of the gastrointestinal tract with moderate to severe pain and pulling sometimes make a normal posture impossible. Also known as colics, the cramp-like symptoms caused by gallstones or kidney stones are among the most severe pains in the body. The pain is often accompanied by nausea and vomiting.
In hormone-related menstrual pain, the cramps are almost always restricted to the lower abdomen. Neurologically induced cramps are never experienced as painful by those affected. After an epileptic seizure (epilepsy), however, most people report severe muscle pain resulting from the cramping position of the muscles.
Diagnosis
Muscular cramps can usually be diagnosed by interviewing the patient. Muscle cramps often occur at night, and those affected complain of muscle hardening in the affected area, which disappears after a few minutes. A blood test provides information as to whether it is a mineral deficiency.
Organ-related cramps can be diagnosed by the doctor not only by questioning the patient but also temporarily by palpating the abdomen or listening to the bowel sounds. In this context he will also ask about the duration of the cramps, the dependence on food intake and the stools. Colicky spasms caused by gallstones or kidney stones can be diagnosed by ultrasound examination.
Cramps of the smooth muscles of the bronchi can be diagnosed almost exclusively by the patient’s description of the symptoms. Neurological spasms (epilepsy) are also usually gone by the time the doctor arrives and can only be diagnosed by questioning, if necessary by the person observing the seizure. EEG recordings of brain waves can in some cases indicate that an epileptic seizure has just ended.
But this is also an exception, and in most cases epileptic seizures can only be diagnosed by asking about the symptoms or by asking about family history. In most cases, hormone-related cycle-dependent seizures are also investigated and do not require any further clarification on the basis of the classic description of the person affected. Three-month colic in children is diagnosed by the pediatrician.
Here, too, the typical infancy and a parental description of the symptoms are often sufficient for diagnosis. For example, children usually put their legs on after eating, screaming loudly, their head is discolored red or blue, their stomach is distended and their feet are cold. Further diagnostic procedures are not necessary in this case.
