Which type of muscular dystrophy predominantly affects proximal muscles of the shoulders and hips?

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Proximal limb-girdle weakness is the defining pattern here: limb girdle muscular dystrophy preferentially affects the hip and shoulder girdle muscles, leading to difficulty with activities like climbing stairs or lifting arms. This pattern helps distinguish it from other dystrophies. For example, facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy mainly involves the shoulder girdle and facial muscles, with scapular winging and facial weakness, rather than hip girdle predominance. Duchenne tends to begin with proximal leg and pelvic girdle weakness in childhood and progresses with calf pseudohypertrophy and cardiopulmonary issues, not a primary predominance of the shoulder–hip girdles. Congenital muscular dystrophy presents early in life with generalized hypotonia and weakness rather than a pattern focused on the proximal shoulder and hip muscles.