Myositis disease

People with inflammatory muscle diseases are seen in the Inflammatory Myositis Clinic at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, in collaboration with colleagues at the Arizona and Florida campuses. The major muscle diseases that are diagnosed and treated include adult and juvenile dermatomyositis, polymyositis, necrotizing autoimmune myopathy (immune-mediated necrotizing myopathy) and inclusion body myositis. These diseases cause muscle inflammation and damage, or both, that may be treatable. As these disorders may involve multiple organ systems, such as the skin and lungs, Mayo Clinic often involves other specialists during an evaluation. Depending on your specific needs, your evaluation may include neurologists, pulmonologists, dermatologists, physical medicine rehabilitation specialists, occupational therapists and physical therapists. To help people further, experts in the Inflammatory Myositis Clinic vigorously pursue clinical research into the causes and treatment of inflammatory myositis in collaboration with other researchers at Mayo Clinic, nationally and internationally. The clinic is a center for major treatment trials involving people with myositis, which gives patients access to the most cutting-edge treatments, depending on their conditions.

Causes of Myositis Myositis is caused by any condition that leads to Inflammatory conditions. Conditions causing inflammation throughout the body may affect the muscles, causing myositis. Many of these causes are autoimmune conditions, in which the body attacks its own tissues. Inflammatory conditions causing potentially severe myositis include: • Dermatomyositis • Polymyositis • Inclusion body myositis Other inflammatory conditions tend to cause milder forms of myositis, including: • Lupus • • Rheumatoid arthritis Inflammatory conditions are often the most serious myositis causes, requiring long-term treatment. Infection. Drugs. Many different • Alpha- • Alcohol • • • • Myopathy may occur right after starting a medication or may occur after taking a drug for months or years. Sometimes it is caused by an interaction between two different medications. Severe myositis caused by medications is rare. Injury. Vigorous Rhabdomyolysis . Rhabdomyolysis occurs when muscles break down quickly. Symptoms of Myositis The main symptom of myositis is muscle weakness. The weakness may be noticeable or may only be found with testing. Muscle pain (myalgias) may or may not be present. The weakness from myositis can lead to falls and make it difficult to get up from a chair or after a fall. Other symptoms that may be present with inflammatory conditions include: • • • Thickening of the • Difficulty swallowing • Difficulty breathing People with myositis caused by a virus usually have symptoms ...

A general term meaning inflammation of the muscles, myositis includes the following diseases: • • • • The above diseases are also referred to as inflammatory myopathies. They cause inflammation within muscle and muscle damage. Polymyositis, dermatomyositis, and juvenile myositis are all autoimmune diseases, meaning the body’s immune system is attacking the muscle. While the immune system may also cause muscle damage in inclusion body myositis, this may not be cause of this disease. Although myositis is often treatable, these diseases are poorly understood and do not always completely respond to current medications. Muscle inflammation and damage may also be caused by certain medications. These are called toxic myopathies. Perhaps the most common toxic myopathy is caused by statin medications which are frequently prescribed to lower cholesterol levels. In most cases, the muscle can recover once the problem medication is identified and stopped. Symptoms Symptoms of myositis may include: • trouble rising from a chair • difficulty climbing stairs or lifting arms • tired feeling after standing or walking • trouble swallowing or breathing • muscle pain and soreness that does not resolve after a few weeks • known elevations in muscle enzymes by blood tests (CPK or aldolase) Although the inflammatory myopathies affect about 50,000 Americans, often they are not diagnosed correctly. In part, this is because patients with autoimmune myopathies have many of the same symptoms as those ...

Myositis is a chronic, progressive inflammation of the muscles. Some types are associated with skin rashes. Medications and exercises can help, but finding the right treatment may take trial and error. This rare disease can be difficult to diagnose, and the cause is sometimes unknown. Symptoms can appear rapidly or gradually over time. Primary symptoms may include muscle pain and soreness, fatigue, trouble swallowing, and difficulty breathing. In the United States, there are an estimated 1,600 to 3,200 new cases per year and 50,000 to 75,000 people living with myositis. Myositis can affect both children and adults. With the exception of one type of myositis, women are more likely to be affected by this disease than men. The five types of myositis are: • dermatomyositis • inclusion-body myositis • juvenile myositis • polymyositis • toxic myositis Dermatomyositis Dermatomyositis (DM) is the easiest form of myositis to diagnose due to the purple-red rashes in the shape of the Other symptoms of DM include: • scaly, dry, or rough skin • Gottron’s papules or Gottron’s sign (bumps found over the knuckles, elbows, and knees, often with a raised, scaly breakout) • trouble rising from a seated position • fatigue • weakness in the neck, hip, back, and shoulder muscles • difficulty swallowing • hoarseness in the voice • hardened lumps of calcium under the skin • muscle pain • joint inflammation • nail-bed abnormalities • weight loss • irregular heartbeat • gastrointestinal ulcers Incl...

There are different types of myositis, as follows: Polymyositis Polymyositis (PM) is a rare disease that affects proximal, or core, muscles, such as the back, hips, and neck. This muscle weakness can appear in a matter of days or become apparent over several months. People with PM often have other autoimmune diseases. PM affects fewer than Dermatomyositis Dermatomyositis (DM) also affects the proximal muscles. However, DM causes skin rashes and other skin-related symptoms as well. DM is another rare condition that affects fewer than Juvenile myositis Juvenile myositis (JM) affects children younger than 18 years of age. The condition includes juvenile polymyositis (JPM) and juvenile dermatomyositis (JDM). JPM causes inflammation in the muscles, whereas JDM results in the inflammation in blood vessels. Doctors diagnose around Immune-mediated necrotizing myositis Immune-mediated necrotizing myositis (IMNM) is also known as necrotizing autoimmune myopathy. It has similar symptoms to PM, but IMNM causes necrosis, or muscle cell death. Necrosis can lead to severe muscle weakness on both sides of the body. An estimated In some cases, the cause of IMNM may be due to using certain medications, such as statins. Inclusion body myositis Inclusion body myositis (IBM) causes progressive muscle atrophy and weakness that may affect one side of the body more than the other. IBM most commonly affects people of 50 years of age and older. IBM affects an estimated Infectious myositis Scientist...

The term “myositis” refers to a general inflammation or swelling of the muscle. Many people have experienced sore muscles after vigorous exercise, a condition that is temporary and improves with rest. Other conditions that can cause muscle weakness and pain include infection, muscle injury from medications, inherited diseases, electrolyte imbalances, and thyroid disease. More often, however, the term myositis is used to refer to a disease involving chronic inflammation of the muscles, often occurring together with other symptoms. This condition is also known as idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM). Visit Types of Myositis The disease is highly variable and has been classified into a number of • • • • • Inflammatory Myopathies Inflammatory myopathies are autoimmune diseases, meaning the body’s immune system, which normally fights infections and viruses, is misdirected and begins to attack the body’s own normal, healthy tissue. Inflammatory myopathies are rare diseases. All forms combined affect an estimated 50,000 to 75,000 people in the United States. While it is still unclear what causes myositis, some scientists believe certain individuals have a genetic predisposition to develop an autoimmune disease, which is triggered by an environmental exposure to some trigger, such as infection, virus, toxin, or sunlight. Symptoms Symptoms of weakness, swelling, and muscle damage often appear gradually. Long before patients are diagnosed, they may have trouble getting up from a c...