Polymyositis
You are 1 in a million. Every girl wish to hear this but not from a Doc - Prabh Kaur
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It didn't happen overnight
When I was finishing my Masters in 2007, I met a lifelong ‘boyfriend’ of mine, as my friends like to call it. Polymyositis is a chronic condition that will never leave me. Rare diseases take an average of three to four years to be diagnosed, however in my case it took almost eight years...
Polymyositis brings along with it: muscle pain and stiffness, muscle weakness, joint pain and stiffness, problems with swallowing and irregular heart rhythms if the heart muscle becomes inflamed. One autoimmune disease usually brings one or two of its friends along with it.
Resources
Polymyositis and dermatomyositis – challenges in diagnosis and management
Polymyositis (PM) and dermatomyositis (DM) are different disease subtypes of idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs). The main clinical features of PM and DM include progressive symmetric, predominantly proximal muscle weakness. Laboratory findings include elevated creatine kinase (CK), autoantibodies in serum, and inflammatory infiltrates in muscle biopsy.
Polymyositis and dermatomyositis: Disease spectrum and classification
Polymyositis (PM) and Dermatomyositis (DM) are autoimmune myopathies characterized by inflammation and weakness of proximal muscles with extra muscular manifestations. In DM there is muscle weakness associated with skin rash. Although both these disorders share some common clinical and histological features like muscle weakness, inflammatory infiltrates on muscle biopsy, but they have certain differences both in terms of presentation and patho-physiology.
Dermatomyositis and Polymyositis
Dermatomyositis (DM) and polymyositis (PM) are idiopathic inflammatory myopathies, characterized by the shared feature of muscle inflammation with associated proximal skeletal muscle weakness (although an amyopathic form of dermatomyositis exists). Dermatomyositis, in addition, is also associated with a variety of characteristic skin manifestations.
Occurrence of polymyositis
Polymyositis can be an isolated disease or seen with another rheumatic diseases such as Autoimmune thyroid disease Hashimoto's or Graves), Insulin dependant diabetes, Multiple sclerosis, Systemic Sclerosis, Sjögren Syndrome, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE), Rheumatoid Arthritis or Mixed Connective Tissue Disease (MCTD), Vitiligo.
Polymyositis: The Comet Tail After COVID-19
The patient presented with muscle weakness, generalized body aches, and fatigue occurring four months after recovering from mild COVID-19.
It didn't happen overnight
Recently, a former engineering student of mine asked me ‘did you have this illness while you were teaching us?’ I replied ‘yes, it didn’t happen overnight’. I somehow managed to work and live life as normally as I could with this rarity.
Girl, Interrupted by Polymyositis
This blog is intended to chronicle my experiences with Polymyositis, a chronic autoimmune disease that involves the body's own immune system attacking and inflaming its muscles, resulting in debilitating weakness and other complications.
Cure JM Foundation
Cure JM Foundation® is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization focused on finding a cure for Juvenile Dermatomyositis (JDM) and Juvenile Polymyositis (JPM), the rare and life-threatening autoimmune diseases collectively known as Juvenile Myositis (JM).
Myositis Association Australia
The disease is more common in women than men and tends to develop between the ages of 50 to 70 years, although anyone of any age or sex can be affected. Since symptoms differ between individuals, Polymyositis is hard to diagnose. In many cases, Polymyositis is associated with other autoimmune disorders of connective tissue such as scleroderma, systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, Raynaud’s syndrome, and Sjogren’s syndrome.
Myositis Support and Understanding Association
Diagnosing polymyositis can be a long and difficult process for several reasons. Polymyositis is a rare disease. Rare diseases are usually more difficult to diagnose. The saying, “When you hear hoofbeats, look for horses, not zebras” is something doctors are taught and in many cases works well. The “horses” are the most common illnesses and the “zebras” refer to the rare diseases, like PM.
Myositis UK
The main symptoms of polymyositis are weak and painful muscles, tiredness and feelings of depression. Some people may also have joint pains. Some may have the disease for months or even years before it is realised, but most notice within weeks if they have developed muscular weakness.
The Myositis Association
Polymyositis (PM) is most commonly found in people over the age of 20 and affects more women than men. PM is characterized by chronic muscle inflammation and weakness. As with other types of myositis, there is no known cause or cure for polymyositis. Although there is not currently a cure, there are treatments that have seen success in managing symptoms.
Autoimmune Association
Polymyositis most commonly affects adults in their 30s, 40s or 50s. Women are affected more often than men. Signs and symptoms usually develop gradually, over weeks or months. While there is no cure for polymyositis, treatment — ranging from medications to physical therapy — can improve your muscle strength and function.
Muscular Dystrophy UK
PM and DM are part of a range of conditions known as myositis-spectrum disorders, which also include necrotising myositis and anti-synthetase syndrome. The key feature linking these conditions together is ‘myositis’ – this means inflammation of the muscles, which can lead to weakness of the arms and legs.
NINDS
Polymyositis is one of a group of muscle diseases known as the inflammatory myopathies, which are characterized by chronic muscle inflammation accompanied by muscle weakness. Polymyositis affects skeletal muscles (those involved with making movement) on both sides of the body.
Physiopedia
PM targets proximal musculature, with little to no pain, impairing strength and is characterized by an elevation of serum muscle enzymes and a wide variety of skin abnormalities, sometimes including cardiopulmonary impairments.
Radiopaedia
Polymyositis is a rare autoimmune, at times considered paraneoplastic, inflammatory condition characterized by proximal muscle weakness (myositis). It is considered a form of idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM). The condition is closely related to dermatomyositis, and the term “polymyositis” is applied when the condition spares the skin.
Sketchy
Watch a free lesson about Polymyositis & Dermatomyositis from our Immunology unit.
StatPearls
Polymyositis, a relatively uncommon autoimmune disorder, develops due to abnormal activation of cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CD8 cells) and macrophages against muscular antigens that result in rhabdomyolysis and ultimately presents as a proximal myopathy.
WikEM
Idiopathic inflammatory myopathy causing symmetric proximal muscle weakness, elevated CK,and characteristic EMG findings.
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