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Inflammation of muscles, or myositis, is a group of conditions that cause inflammation in muscles, leading to muscle weakness, swelling, and pain. It can be caused by injury, infection, or autoimmune disease, and can affect muscles all over the body, making even simple movements difficult. Myositis can also refer to the muscle inflammation itself, which is often a symptom of other conditions. While there is no cure for myositis, its symptoms can be managed through treatments such as anti-inflammatory medicines, physical therapy, and rest.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name of condition | Myositis, inflammatory myopathy, necrotizing autoimmune myopathy, or immune-mediated necrotizing myopathy |
| Cause | Caused by white blood cells of the immune system, which mistakenly attack healthy muscle fibres |
| Symptoms | Muscle inflammation, weakness, fatigue, pain, swelling, skin rash, trouble breathing and swallowing |
| Risk factors | Age, sex, ethnicity |
| Treatments | Anti-inflammatory medicines, steroid medicines, corticosteroids, physical therapy, exercise, heat therapy, assistive devices, rest |
| Diagnosis | Physical exam, lab tests, imaging tests, muscle biopsy |
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What You'll Learn
- Myositis: Muscle inflammation caused by white blood cells attacking healthy muscle fibres
- Polymyositis: Irritation and inflammation of muscles, affecting movement
- Dermatomyositis: Muscle weakness and skin rash
- Necrotizing autoimmune myopathy: Muscle cells die, leading to weakness
- Causes: Infection, injury, autoimmune conditions, or drug side effects
Myositis: Muscle inflammation caused by white blood cells attacking healthy muscle fibres
Myositis is a chronic inflammatory disease that affects the muscles. It is characterised by inflammation of the muscle, caused by white blood cells attacking healthy muscle fibres. This can lead to muscle injury, weakness, and fatigue, as well as difficulty in performing everyday activities such as climbing stairs or brushing hair.
Myositis is an autoimmune disease, meaning that the body's immune system attacks its own healthy tissues. In the case of myositis, white blood cells, which normally protect the body from infections, mistakenly attack and injure healthy muscle fibres. This can lead to muscle inflammation and weakness, as well as other related conditions. While the exact cause of myositis is unknown, it is believed to be triggered by various factors, including infection, injury, autoimmune conditions, or drug side effects.
There are several types of myositis, including polymyositis, dermatomyositis, and inclusion body myositis. Polymyositis causes muscle weakness, usually in the muscles closest to the trunk of the body, and can affect muscles all over the body. Dermatomyositis causes muscle weakness and a skin rash, and is more common in women than in men. Inclusion body myositis causes weakness in muscles, usually near the ends of the arms or around the tops of the legs, and is more common in men than in women.
Myositis can also affect other parts of the body, such as the lungs, heart, and digestive tract. Lung inflammation can cause coughing or shortness of breath, while inflammation in the heart can lead to long-term breathlessness. In some cases, myositis can cause problems with swallowing or breathing, and may even lead to severe disability.
While there is no cure for myositis, symptoms can be managed through various treatments, including anti-inflammatory medications, physical therapy, exercise, heat therapy, and rest. It is important for individuals with myositis to work with their healthcare providers to find the most effective treatment plan for their specific symptoms and needs.
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Polymyositis: Irritation and inflammation of muscles, affecting movement
Inflammation of muscles is referred to as myositis, a group of conditions that cause inflammation in muscles. Myositis can also refer to the muscle inflammation itself. This inflammation often leads to weakness, swelling, and pain over time, making it harder to do everyday activities.
Polymyositis is a rare disease that causes muscles to become irritated and inflamed. The muscles eventually start to break down and become weak, making even simple movements difficult. The condition can affect muscles all over the body. Polymyositis is a disease in a group of diseases called inflammatory myopathies. The exact cause of polymyositis is not known, but it is believed to be triggered by a virus or an autoimmune reaction. An autoimmune reaction is when the body attacks its own tissues.
Polymyositis can cause inflammation in multiple muscles simultaneously, typically affecting the muscles on or near the centre of the body, including the hips and thighs. It can also cause trouble swallowing, shortness of breath, joint pain, stiffness, weight loss, and fatigue. These symptoms can make everyday tasks challenging, such as climbing stairs, lifting arms, or getting out of a chair.
There is no cure for polymyositis, and treatment focuses on managing symptoms and their impact on daily life. Steroid medications, immunosuppressive drugs, physical therapy, heat therapy, and rest are common approaches to managing the condition. If left untreated, polymyositis can lead to severe, life-threatening complications and severe disability.
Polymyositis is most prevalent in people aged 31 to 60 and rarely occurs in those under 18. It affects women two to three times more than men. People of Sub-Saharan African descent are at a higher risk of developing the condition.
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Dermatomyositis: Muscle weakness and skin rash
Myositis refers to a group of conditions that cause inflammation in muscles, but it can also refer to the muscle inflammation itself. Myositis is an autoimmune disease characterised by inflammation of the muscles. While experts aren't sure what causes myositis, it could be triggered by infection, injury, autoimmune conditions, or drug side effects.
Dermatomyositis is a type of myositis that causes muscle weakness and a skin rash. It can affect both children and adults. Juvenile dermatomyositis is the most common form of dermatomyositis in children. It causes muscle weakness, especially in the thighs, upper arms, abdomen, and neck. Children with dermatomyositis may also develop painful deposits of calcium in their damaged muscles, which can sometimes result in permanently rigid joints, known as contractures.
In adults, dermatomyositis can cause a red or pink rash on the upper eyelids, face and neck, and on the backs of the hands and fingers. It can also lead to muscle weakness, particularly in the muscles closest to the trunk of the body, such as the forearms, thighs, hips, shoulders, neck, and back. This can make everyday tasks such as climbing stairs, brushing hair, and getting in and out of cars difficult.
Dermatomyositis is a chronic condition, but many children experience periods of remission where their symptoms improve or disappear. There is no cure for dermatomyositis, but symptoms can be treated with high doses of corticosteroids, medications, physical therapy, exercise, heat therapy, assistive devices, and rest.
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Necrotizing autoimmune myopathy: Muscle cells die, leading to weakness
Inflammation of muscles, or myositis, is an autoimmune disease characterised by inflammation of the muscle. Myositis can refer to a group of conditions that cause inflammation in muscles, or the inflammation itself. The inflammation is caused by white blood cells of the immune system, which, in people with myositis, mistakenly attack healthy muscle fibres, injuring or destroying them and affecting muscle function. This can lead to muscle weakness, fatigue, pain, and swelling.
Myositis can affect the whole body, and its symptoms vary between different people. The most common muscles to be affected are those around the shoulders, hips, and thighs. The weakening and tiredness in the muscles can make patients more likely to fall over. Myositis can also affect breathing and swallowing, and on rare occasions, it may cause weakening of the heart.
One type of myositis is necrotizing autoimmune myopathy (NAM), also referred to as immune-mediated necrotizing myopathy (IMNM). NAM is a rare inflammatory muscle disease that involves necrosis, or cell death, in the muscles, which causes symmetrical muscle weakness. NAM primarily affects proximal muscles, or those closest to the centre of the body, such as the forearms, hips, thighs, shoulders, neck, and back. NAM is characterised by predominant necrosis of muscle cells with less inflammation than other forms of myositis. Muscle weakness associated with NAM is often severe and disabling, and it is considered one of the most severely disabling autoimmune diseases. NAM can also lead to difficulty swallowing.
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Causes: Infection, injury, autoimmune conditions, or drug side effects
Myositis is the most commonly referenced condition associated with muscle inflammation. It is a rare disease that causes the immune system to attack muscles throughout the body. The muscle inflammation in myositis is caused by white blood cells of the immune system, which are normally supposed to protect the body from infections. In people with myositis, these cells mistakenly attack a person's own healthy muscle fibres and can injure or destroy them. This affects muscle function and can lead to fatigue, weakness, pain and stiffness. The symptoms of myositis come and go in episodes, and there is currently no cure. However, treatment can help put the disease into remission, and physical therapy exercises can help manage the symptoms.
Infection:
Some people develop myositis after a viral infection, such as the common cold or influenza.
Injury:
Myositis can make it hard or impossible to use the affected muscles. This can cause trouble with everyday tasks such as washing or brushing hair, reaching for items, or getting up from low chairs.
Autoimmune conditions:
Autoimmune diseases are the result of your immune system attacking your body instead of protecting it. Myositis is an example of an autoimmune disease, and people with other autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis or scleroderma are more likely to develop it.
Drug side effects:
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as aspirin, ibuprofen and naproxen sodium are often used to reduce inflammation. However, taking large doses of NSAIDs or using them for a long time can cause side effects. These may include gastrointestinal symptoms such as feeling bloated, nausea, constipation, and stomach pain. More serious side effects that require immediate medical attention include bloody stools, severe stomach pain, blurred vision, wheezing, chest pain, and unusual bruising or bleeding.
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Frequently asked questions
Inflammation of muscles is called myositis, which is a group of conditions that cause inflammation in muscles.
The symptoms of inflammation of muscles include muscle weakness, fatigue, pain, and swelling. In some cases, it can also lead to difficulty in swallowing and breathing.
The exact cause of inflammation of muscles is not known, but it is believed to be triggered by infection, injury, autoimmune conditions, or drug side effects. In some cases, it can also be caused by intense exercise or viral infections.
Inflammation of muscles can be diagnosed through a physical exam, lab tests, imaging tests, and a muscle biopsy.
There is no cure for inflammation of muscles, but the symptoms can be managed through treatments such as anti-inflammatory medicines, physical therapy, exercise, heat therapy, assistive devices, and rest.
