Polymyositis - adult

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Superficial anterior muscles

The disease is treated with corticosteroid medications. When an improvement in muscle strength is achieved, usually in 4 to 6 weeks, the medication is slowly tapered off. Maintenance therapy with prednisone may be continued indefinitely. In people who fail to respond to corticosteroids, medications to suppress the immune system may be used.

If the condition is associated with a tumor, the condition may improve if the tumor is removed.

Remission (a period when no symptoms are present) and recovery occur in many patients, especially children. For most others, immunosuppressant drugs can control the disease. In adults, death may result from severe and prolonged muscle weakness, malnutrition, pneumonia, or respiratory failure. The probable outcome is usually worse if the lungs are involved.

• associated malignancy
• heart disease , lung disease , or abdominal complications
• calcium deposits in the affected muscles, especially in children with the disease

Call your health care provider if symptoms of this disorder occur; shortness of breath and difficulty swallowing can indicate an urgent need for treatment.

Review Date: 10/13/2005
Reviewed By: Ariel D. Teitel, M.D., M.B.A., Chief, Division of Rheumatology, St. Vincent's Hospital, New York, NY. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.