Outcome in Patients With Recent Onset Polymyositis and Dermatomyositis
Status:
Completed
Trial end date:
1969-12-31
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
Most patients respond to medical treatment with corticosteroids and immunosuppressive
treatment, but a majority of patients develop sustained muscle impairment. The aim of this
study was to evaluate the outcome of muscle endurance assessed with the Functional Index-2
(FI-2), muscle strength assessed by the MMT-8 and disease activity assessed by the six item
core set at 6 and 12 months following diagnosis in patients with polymyositis (PM) and
dermatomyositis (DM).
72 patients diagnosed with probable or definite PM or DM 2003-2010 who performed the FI-2 and
the MMT at the time of diagnosis were included in this Swedish Myositis Register study. All
patients had performed both the Functional Index-2 assessing muscle endurance and the Manual
Muscle test (MMT) assessing isometric muscle strength. Physician Global assessment based on
the evaluation of the consensus recommended six item core set for disease activity assessment
was also included. Data were analysed on group levels as well as with criteria for individual
responder criteria. A responder was identified as improving at least 20 % compared to
baseline.