by Lorelei Cohen

Created on: August 01, 2009   Last Updated: August 02, 2009

Dermatomyositis is an autoimmune connective tissue disease that is closely related to Polymyositis. Simply explained: poly means multiple, myo means muscle, and sitis means inflammation, so the three syllables of this word combine to form multiple muscle inflammation. Polymyositis is characterized by inflammation causing muscle weakness, as well as skin rashes, and muscle or joint pain. Dermatomyositis is very similar to Polymyositis but has the added symptom of skin inflammation.

Both Dermatomyositis and Polymyositis can be combined with overlapping symptoms of Interstitual Lung disease, Vasculitis, and one or more types of arthritis, as well as other inflammatory illnesses and syndromes. The more commonly associated arthritises are Rheumatoid arthritis, Lupus, and Scleroderma.

The muscle weakness of this disease can be severe to the point that the sufferer may have difficulty in rising from bed, walking, holding their head erect, bathing, swallowing or breathing. Fatigue is a very common complaint of the illness, and it combined with continuous flareups of the illness, make it difficult for individuals with Dermatomyositis or Polymyositis to maintain gainful employment.

Each form of the illness is individual to the person who suffers from it and with no two cases being distinctly the same. For this reason prognosis is also individual depending largely on the severity and overlap of symptoms present within each patient. With increasing knowledge about the illness, and newer drug therapies, a person diagnosed with Dermatomyositis today can expect to live a long life. The illness can, and often is chronic, but new therapies reduce the chance of dying from this illness to about a ten percent mortality rate.

It is estimated that approximately thirty to forty percent of individuals with this illness will have some form of cancer discovered within them when they are first diagnosed with Dermatomyositis or Polymyositis. This extremely high rate of cancer leads researchers to believe that the two illnesses are somehow entwined together. It is interesting to note that if the cancer is found early after diagnosis, and treated effectively, than often the symptoms of the Dermatomyositis or Polymyositis will also disappear.

Treatment for people who suffer from Dermatomyositis generally involve a combination therapy of steroids, immune suppressants, anti-inflammatories, and pain relievers. Some common drug treatments are Prednisone, Methotrexate, Plaquenil, Cellcept and Imuran.

Massage therapy, range of motion exercises, stretching or aqua therapy, splints and mobility aides are also generally required by sufferers of this illness. Lifestyle and dietary changes can greatly aide individuals who suffer from this disease.

Because this illness is so individual to each sufferer be sure to always research, and to question, your drug therapy options. Become active in your treatments to insure that you are receiving the therapies that are best for your illness.

Interstitual lung disease should be closely monitored as it can affect mortality rates.

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasculitis

http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlek ey=19884

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dermatomyositis

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