INFORMATION ON INFLAMMATORY MYOPATHY

Inflammatory myopathies are a group of muscle diseases that involving inflammation of the muscles or associated tissues, such as the blood vessels that supply the muscles. A myopathy is a muscle disease, and inflammation is a response to cell damage. Inflammatory myopathies, inflammatory cells surround, invade, and destroy normal muscle fibers as though they were defective or foreign to the body. The inflammatory process leads to destruction of muscle tissue, and is accompanied by weakness and sometimes pain. This muscle weakness is usually symmetrical and develops slowly over weeks to months or even years.

SYNONYMS OF INFLAMMATORY MYOPATHY

Synonyms and related keywords are: Polymyositis:-

1. Dermatomyositis,
2. Inclusion body myositis,
3. Virus-mediated muscle injury,
4. Microvascular insult,
5. Collagen vascular disease

CAUSES OF INFLAMMATORY MYOPATHY

Main causes of Inflammatory Myopathy are:-

1. A form of autoimmune disease, where the immune system responds in a harmful manner to the rest of the body.
2. A viral illness causes an injury that activates a flawed immune response.
3. A genetic predisposition may exist for Inflammatory Myopathy, and abnormal activities of certain white blood cells may be involved in the cause of both the skin and the muscle disease.
4. The body’s immune system turns against its own muscles and damages muscle tissue in an autoimmune response.

SYMPTOMS OF INFLAMMATORY MYOPATHY

The following are the main symptoms of Inflammatory Myopathy are:-

1. Weakness of muscle function in the area affected is usually the first symptom of inflammatory myopathy.
2. A child with chronic inflammatory myositis may have some symptoms that are similar to those seen in adults who develop one of the idiopathic inflammatory myopathies.
3. Abnormal activities of certain white blood cells may be involved in the cause of both the skin and the muscle disease.
4. Inflammatory muscle disease in children can be characterized as either acute or chronic in nature
5. The distribution of weakness is variable, and involvement of the knee extensor muscle and the wrist and finger flexor muscles are common.

DIAGNOSIS OF INFLAMMATORY MYOPATHY

The main clinical features for diagnosis of inclusion body myositis are:-

1. Muscles biopsy.
2. Blood test.
3. Physical examination.

TREATMENT OF INFLAMMATORY MYOPATHY

Presently, no treatment is shown to be effective against the different forms of Inflammatory Myopathy. Some moderate success has been obtained with the combination of corticosteroids and methotrexate or human intravenous immunoglobulins . New therapeutic protocols are currently being under testing.

Inflammatory Myopathy is commonly treated with corticosteroids . Potential side effects of corticosteroids are increased appetite, weight gain, difficulty sleeping, easy bruising, and stomach upset. Longer term use of corticosteroids can lower your resistance to infection, as well as cause stomach ulcers, muscle weakness, and bone thinning.

Different therapeutic alternatives can be attempted with immunosuppressants, notably azathioprine, methotrexate and intravenous immunoglobulins

Treatment may continue for several years. All individuals with myositis should rest their muscles during the early part of the treatment. After the muscle inflammation is improved, special exercises to strengthen muscles should be started.