Prevalence and clinical characteristics of polymyositis in a Chinese cohort / 中华风湿病学杂志

Objective:To analyze the frequency and characteristics of polymyositis (PM) in idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM), and to investigate whether PM is over-diagnosed.Methods:Patients diagnosed as IIM according to the Bohan & Peter criteria of IIM hospitalized in the Department of Rheumatology of China-Japan Friendship Hospital from 2008 to 2019 were involved in the study. Definite PM (dPM) was defined as typical clinical and pathological features including elevated creatine kinase (CK) level, muscle weakness and muscle biopsy findings with endomysial CD8 + T cell infiltration and expression of MHC-1 on sarcolemma. Meanwhile, dermatomyositis (DM), anti-synthase syndrome(ASS), immune-mediated necrotic myopathy(IMNM), sporadic inclusion body myositis(sIBM) and other myopathies were excluded according to the new classification criteria of IIM subtypes respectively. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS software 24.0. The Kruskal-Wallis test and χ2 test were used to compare the clinical characteristics between the dPM group and other IIM subtypes. Results:A total of 1 259 patients with IIM including 1 015 (80.6%) DM and 244(19.4%) PM were enrolled in this study. According to the strict definition of PM criteria, only 0.5% of patients (6/1 259) in IIM could be diagnosed as dPM. Most PM patients were IMNM and ASS according to the new IIM subtypes criteria, of which 48.0% (117/244) were IMNM and 32.0% (78/244) were ASS. 66.7%(4/6) of dPM patients were women. One complicated with RA, and one was dPM overlaped with systemic sclerosis. All of them had muscle weakness, mild elevation of CK level [611(391,1 451) U/L], and were myositis-specific autoantibodies negative. Except one dPM patients who did not receive immunoregulatory therapy due to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, the others were administrated with low or medium dose prednisone combined with or without immunosuppressive agents. After a median follow-up of (38±26) months, the muscle strength of dPM patients were improved.Conclusion:dPM is a very rare clinical subtype of IIM. PM is an over-diagnosed entity in clinical practice. Patients with dPM have mild symptoms and good outcome.

The use of high-sensitivity cardiac troponin I in assessing cardiac involvement and Disease prognosis in idiopathic inflammatory myopathy

Abstract Objectives Cardiac involvement is one of the most serious complications of idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM) that indicates poor prognosis. However, there is a lack of effective biomarkers for the identification of cardiac involvement and the prediction of prognosis in IIM. Here, we aimed to explore the value of different cardiac biomarkers in IIM patients. Methods A total of 142 IIM patients in the Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Ruijin Hospital from July 2019 to October 2022 were included in this study. The clinical characteristics, laboratory tests, treatments and prognosis were recorded. The disease activity was assessed according to the core set measures. The correlations of the serum cardiac biomarkers levels with disease activity were analyzed by the Spearman correlation test. Risk factors for cardiac involvement were evaluated by multivariate logistic regression analysis. Results Higher high-sensitivity cardiac troponin I (hs-cTnI) levels were associated with cardiac involvement (n = 41) in IIM patients [adjusted OR 7.810 (95% CI: 1.962-31.097); p = 0.004], independent of other serum cardiac biomarkers. The abnormal hs-cTnI had the highest AUC for distinguishing of cardiac involvement in IIM patients (AUC = 0.848, 95% CI: 0.772,0.924; p < 0.001). Besides, we found that high serum levels of hs-cTnI were significantly correlated with disease activity. Moreover, patients with higher serum levels of hs-cTnI tended to suffer from poor prognosis. Conclusions Serum hs-cTnI testing may play a role in screening for cardiac involvement in IIM patients. Abnormal levels of serum hs-cTnI were associated with increased disease activity and poor prognosis. Key Points Among all the cardiac biomarkers, the serum levels of hs-cTnI were independently associated with cardiac involvement in IIM patients. The serum levels of hs-cTnI were significantly correlated with disease activity in IIM patients. The abnormal hs-cTnI levels were correlated with poor prognosis in IIM patients.

Prognostic value of tumor markers in idiopathic inflammatory myopathy associated interstitial lung disease / 中华健康管理学杂志

Objective:To explore the correlation between tumor markers and prognosis of patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM) associated interstitial lung disease (ILD).Methods:A total of 149 patients who were no less than 18 years old and diagnosed with IIM-ILD from July 2017 to September 2019 in the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University were consecutively enrolled in the study. Ten patients were lost to follow-up. The remaining 139 cases were regarded as research objects. Patients were divided into survival group or death group according to their one-year survival status. Then their baseline characteristics were compared. Univariate Cox regression analyses of age, gender, cancer, inflammatory indexes, muscle zymogram, tumor markers, ferritin, melanoma differentiation-associated gene 5 (MDA5) antibody and treatment regimens were conducted to identify prognostic risk factors of one-year mortality. Corrected multivariable cox regression was applied to screen the independent risk factors associated with one-year mortality of IIM-ILD. According to the cut-off value of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and neuron specific enolase (NSE) (6 μg/L and 28 μg/L, respectively), patients were divided into high-level groups and low-level groups. Kaplan Meier survival curve were generated to compare one-year survival rate of high-level groups and low-level groups. On the basis of qualitative results of MDA5 antibody, patients were split into two groups with positive MDA5 antibody or negative MDA5 antibody. The differences of CEA, NSE levels between the two groups and the correlation between CEA, NSE levels and ferritin were analyzed.Results:Age, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), CEA, carbohydrate antigen (CA) 199, NSE and ferritin in the death group were higher than those in the survival group, while the rate of immunosuppressant administration was lower than that in survival group ( P<0.05). Univariate regression analyses showed that CEA, cytokeratin 19 fragment (CYFRA211) and NSE were risk factors for one-year mortality of IIM-ILD. Adjusted by age, treatment regimens and tumor, multivariate regression analysis showed that CEA [ HR=1.112, 95% CI (1.017-1.214), P=0.019] and NSE [ HR=1.033, 95% CI (1.002-1.064), P=0.034] were independent risk factors for one-year mortality. One-year survival rate of the group with CEA≥6 μg/L was lower than that in the group with CEA<6 μg/L (Logrank test, P<0.001). Similarly, one-year survival rate of the group with NSE≥28 μg/L was lower than that in the group with NSE<28 μg/L (Logrank test, P<0.001). In addition, the CEA level in patients with positive MDA5 antibody was higher than that in patients with negative MDA5 antibody ( P<0.001). However, there was no correlation between NSE and MDA5 antibody. Moreover, serum levels of CEA ( r=0.299, P=0.002) and NSE ( r=0.349, P<0.001) were positively correlated with ferritin. Conclusions:Tumor markers have predictive value for the prognosis of IIM-ILD. Higher CEA and NSE are independent risk factors for poor prognosis in patients with IIM-ILD.

Role of HIS score in predicting the prognosis of anti-melanoma differentiation associated gene 5 antibody-positive dermatomyositis patients with interstitial lung disease / 中华风湿病学杂志

Objective:To investigate the role of HIS (hyperinflammatory syndrome) score in predicting the prognosis of anti-melanoma differentiation associated gene 5(MDA5) antibody-positive dermatomyositis (DM) patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD).Methods:A total of 43 patients with anti-MDA5 antibody-positive dermatomyositis and 228 connective tissue disease (CTD) patients with ILD hospitalized in the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University from January 2018 to April 2021 were enrolled into this study. All patients were complicated with ILD and their HIS score were assessed. Non-parametric Mann-Whitney U test, Chi-squared test, Fisher exact probability and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve were used for data analysis. Results:The HIS score of 43 patients with anti-MDA5 antibody-positive dermat-omyositis were collected. Among 228 CTD-ILD patients in the control groups, the primary disease consisted of 33(14.5%) anti-synthetase antibody syndrome (ASS), 44(19.3%) rheumatoid arthritis (RA), 65(28.5%) Sj?gren's syndromes (SS), 43 (18.9%) systemic sclerosis (SSc) and 43 (18.9%) systemic lupus erythematosus(SLE). The HIS score of anti-MDA5-positive DM-ILD patients [2(1, 3)] was higher than those in ASS patients [1(0, 2), Z=-2.06, P<0.05] and significantly higher than those in RA-ILD [1(0, 2), Z=-2.87, P<0.01], SS-ILD [0(0,1), Z=-5.78, P<0.01], SSC-ILD [1(0, 1), Z=-3.84, P<0.01] and SLE-ILD [1(0, 2), Z=-3.81, P<0.01]. Comparing HIS score of anti-MDA5-positive DM-ILD patients, the 3-months mortality rate in the low, medium and high groups was 0(0/15), 38.1%(8/21) and 85.7%(6/7). The area under ROC curve (95% CI) was 0.857[(0.747, 0.967), P<0.001] for HIS score in predicting 3-months mortality probability of anti-MDA5-positive DM-ILD. Conclusion:HIS score of anti-MDA5-positive DM-ILD is higher than that in CTD-ILD patients and the baseline level is related to the 3-months mortality rate.

Características clínicas, inmunológicas y daño de órganos en pacientes con miopatías inflamatorias idiopáticas / Organ damage clinical and immunological characteristics in patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies

Introducción: Las miopatías inflamatorias idiopáticas constituyen un grupo de enfermedades musculares caracterizadas por debilidad muscular crónica e inflamación muscular de etiología desconocida. Objetivo: Identificar las características clínicas e inmunológicas y su relación con el daño de órganos en los pacientes con miopatías inflamatorias idiopáticas. Métodos: Se realizó estudio observacional, descriptivo, transversal, en 52 pacientes con diagnóstico de miopatía inflamatoria idiopática, seguidos en la consulta protocolizada de Reumatología del Hospital Clínico Quirúrgico Hermanos Ameijeiras entre enero 2016 y enero 2017. Para las variables cualitativas se calcularon los porcentajes de cada grupo. Se utilizó Chi-cuadrado de Pearson (estadístico exacto de Fisher). Nivel de significación del 95 por ciento (α = 0,05) para relacionar la presencia de anticuerpos y el tipo de miopatía así como la presencia de manifestaciones clínicas de MII. Resultados: El 80,8 por ciento fueron mujeres y 86,5 por ciento de procedencia urbana. La edad media al comienzo fue 42,8 ± 13,2 años, tiempo de demora al diagnóstico de 8,8 ± 7,0 meses, tiempo medio de evolución de la enfermedad de 7,5 ± 7,1 años. El 80,8 por ciento estaba en remisión, 50 por ciento tenía anticuerpos específicos. La hipertensión arterial se encontró en 28,8 por ciento de los pacientes y 23,1 por ciento presentó neumonía intersticial. La artritis estuvo presente en 96,2 por ciento. El 26,9 por ciento presentaron anticuerpos específicos Jo-1 y 21,2 por ciento Ro 52. Conclusiones: Predominaron los pacientes del sexo femenino en la cuarta década de la vida de procedencia urbana, los anticuerpos específicos encontrados más frecuentes fue el anti Jo-1, asociado a la presencia de neumopatía intersticial(AU)

Introduction: Idiopathic inflammatory myopathies constitute a group of muscle diseases characterized by chronic muscle weakness and muscle inflammation of unknown etiology. Objective: To identify the clinical and immunological characteristics and their relationship with organ damage in patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies. Methods: An observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study was carried out in 52 patients with diagnosis of idiopathic inflammatory myopathy, followed in the protocolized consultation of Rheumatology at Hermanos Ameijeiras Clinical and Surgical Hospital from January 2016 to January 2017. For the qualitative variables, the percentages of each group were calculated. Pearson's Chi-square (Fisher's exact statistic) was used. 95percent significance level (α = 0.05) was used to relate the presence of antibodies and the type of myopathy as well as the presence of clinical manifestations of MII. Results: 80.8percent were women and 86.5percent of urban origin. The mean age at the beginning was 42.8 ± 13.2 years, time delay to diagnosis was 8.8 ± 7.0 months, mean time of evolution of the disease of 7.5 ± 7.1 years. 80.8percent were in remission, 50percent had specific antibodies. Hypertension was found in 28.8percent of the patients and 23.1percent had interstitial pneumonia. Arthritis was present in 96.2percent. 26.9percent had specific Jo1 antibodies and 21.2percent had Ro 52. Conclusions: Urban female patients in the fourth decade of life predominated, the most frequent specific antibodies found was anti-Jo-1, associated with the presence of interstitial lung disease(AU)

Caracterización epidemiológica de pacientes con miopatía inflamatoria en un hospital de cuarto nivel en Cali, Colombia / Epidemiological characterization of patients with inflammatory myopathy in a fourth level hospital in Cali, Colombia

Introducción: Las miopatías inflamatorias idiopáticas (MII) constituyen un grupo heterogéneo de enfermedades que comprometen la musculatura esquelética y se manifiestan por debilidad y signos inflamatorios en la biopsia muscular. El objetivo de este estudio es hacer una caracterización epidemiológica de una cohorte de pacientes con MII en una población del suroccidente colombiano. Metodología: De forma retrospectiva, se revisaron las historias clínicas de pacientes con diagnóstico de MII que fueron tratados en un hospital de cuarto nivel de complejidad en Cali, Colombia, entre el 2011 y el 2017. Se recolectaron variables demográficas, clínicas, serológicas y de tratamiento. Resultados: Se identificaron 72 pacientes con MII, mayoritariamente mujeres (n = 54, 75%). La media de edad al inicio de los síntomas fue de 37,11 ± 19,18 años. Las principales MII fueron dermatomiositis (DM) y polimiositis, las cuales se presentaron en 35 (48,6%) y 25 pacientes (34,7%), respectivamente. Veintiocho pacientes (38,8%) presentaban enfermedad autoinmune asociada, siendo el lupus eritematoso sistémico la más frecuente, al presentarse en7 (9,72%) pacientes. La biopsia de músculo se realizó en 25 pacientes (34,7%), mientras que28 (38,8%) tenían anticuerpos antinucleares positivos. La mediana de la creatinfosfoquinasa fue de 877,5 mg/dL (163,5-4.358,3). Sesenta y siete pacientes (93,1%) fueron tratados con glucocorticoides y 18 (25%) con rituximab (RTX) como monoterapia o combinado con otro fármaco inmunosupresor. Conclusiones: La DM es la condición clínica más frecuente, es común en mujeres y se presenta en la cuarta década de vida. Los tratamientos con los que más se obtuvo mejoría clínica fueron los glucocorticoides, seguidos del RTX en monoterapia o combinado con otros inmunosupresores.

Background: Idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM) are a heterogeneous group of diseases characterised by skeletal muscle involvement, manifested by weakness and inflammatory signs in the muscle biopsy. The objective of this article is to describe the clinical, laboratory, and treatment features of a cohort of patients with IIM in southwest Colombia. Methods: A retrospective review was conducted on the medical records of patients diagnosed with IIM treated at a fourth-level complexity hospital in Cali, Colombia, from 2011 to 2017. Demographic, clinical, serological, and treatment data were collected. Results: A total of 72 patients with IIM were identified, mostly women (n = 54,75%). The mean age at onset of symptoms was 37.11 ± 19.18 years. The main subtypes of IIM were dermatomyositis (DM) and polymyositis, occurring in 35 patients (48.6%) and 25 patients (34.7%), respectively. Twenty-eight patients (38.8%) had associated autoimmune disease, with syste mic lupus erythematosus being the most frequent in 7 (9.72%) patients. Muscle biopsy was performed in 25 patients (34.7%), while 28 (38.8%) had positive antinuclear antibodies. The median creatine phosphokinase was 877.5 mg/dL (163.5-4358.3). Sixty-seven patients (93.1%) were treated with glucocorticoids, and 18 (25%) patients were treated with rituximab (RTX) as monotherapy or combined with another immunosuppressant drug. Conclusions: DM is the most frequent subtype of IIM, being common in women and occurring in the fourth decade of life. The most used treatments were glucocorticoids, followed by RTX monotherapy, or combined with other immunosuppressants.

Características clínicas, inmunológicas y daño de órganos en pacientes con miopatías inflamatorias idiopáticas / Clinical and immunological characteristics and organ damage in patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies

RESUMEN Introducción: Las miopatías inflamatorias idiopáticas constituyen un grupo de enfermedades musculares caracterizadas por debilidad muscular crónica e inflamación muscular de etiología desconocida. Objetivo: Identificar las características clínicas e inmunológicas y daño de órganos en pacientes con miopatías inflamatorias idiopáticas. Método: Se realizó estudio observacional, descriptivo, transversal en 52 pacientes con diagnóstico de miopatía inflamatoria idiopática, seguidos en la consulta protocolizada de Reumatología del Hospital Clínico Quirúrgico "Hermanos Ameijeiras" entre enero 2016 y enero 2017. Para las variables cualitativas se calcularon los porcentajes de cada grupo. Se utilizó Chi-cuadrado de Pearson (Estadístico exacto de Fisher), nivel de significación del 95 % (α=0,05) para relacionar la presencia de anticuerpos y el tipo de miopatía, así como la presencia de manifestaciones clínicas de miopatías inflamatorias idiopáticas. Resultados: Del total de pacientes estudiadas, 80,8 % fueron mujeres, 61,5 % de color de piel negra, 86,5 % de procedencia urbana. La edad media al comienzo fue 42,8 ± 13,2 años, tiempo de demora al diagnóstico de 8,8 ± 7,0 meses, tiempo medio de evolución de la enfermedad de 7,5 ± 7,1 años, 80,8 % estaban en remisión, 50 % tenía anticuerpos específicos. La hipertensión arterial se encontró en 28,8 % de los pacientes y 23,1 % presentó neumonía intersticial. La artritis estuvo presente en 96,2 %, 26,9 % presentaron anticuerpos específicos Jo1 y 21,2 % Ro 52. Conclusiones: Predominaron los pacientes del sexo femenino, en la cuarta década de la vida, de procedencia urbana. Los anticuerpos específicos encontrado con más frecuencia fue el anti Jo-1, que se asoció a la presencia de neumopatía intersticial.

ABSTRACT Introduction: Idiopathic inflammatory myopathies constitute a group of muscle diseases characterized by chronic muscle weakness and muscle inflammation of unknown etiology. Objective: To identify the clinical and immunological characteristics and organ damage in patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies. Method: An observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study was carried out in 52 patients with diagnosis of idiopathic inflammatory myopathy, followed up in the protocolized service of Rheumatology at Hermanos Ameijeiras Clinical Surgical Hospital from January 2016 to January 2017. The qualitative variables were calculated with the percentages in each group. Pearson's Chi-square (Fisher's exact statistic) (95% significance level (α = 0.05) was used to relate the presence of antibodies and the type of myopathy as well as the presence of clinical manifestations of idiopathic inflammatory myopathies. Results: 80.8% were women of the total patients studied, 61.5% non-white skin color, 86.5% of urban origin. The mean age at the beginning was 42.8 ± 13.2 years, time delay to diagnosis was 8.8 ± 7.0 months, mean time of evolution of the disease of 7.5 ± 7.1 years. 80.8% were in remission, 50% had specific antibodies. Hypertension was found in 28.8% of the patients and 23.1% had interstitial pneumonia. Arthritis was present in 96.2%. We found 26.9% had specific Jo1 antibodies and 21.2% Ro 52. Conclusions: Urban origin female patients predominated, in their fourth decade of life, the more frequent specific antibodies found was anti Jo-1, which was associated with the presence of interstitial lung disease.

Long-term rituximab treatment of refractory idiopathic inflammatory myopathy: A report of 3 cases / 北京大学学报(医学版)

Idiopathic inflammatory myopathies are a group of rare but serious diseases. The treatment of refractory idiopathic inflammatory myopathy is always challenging, especially in children. Three cases of refractory idiopathic inflammatory myopathy treated by rituximab were reported and discussed with the review of relevant literature. All were female with on-set age of 8 years and 6 months, 11 years and 7 months, 4 years and 2 months old, respectively. All had acute onset, presenting with progressive and severe muscle weakness. All lost ambulation within 1 or 2 months, with difficult swallowing and low voice. Respiratory distress occurred in case 2 after an attack of asphyxia due to an aspiration of sputum, and ventilator support was required for 1 month. Rashes were detected at the initial stage of the disease in cases 2 and 3. Patient 2 showed facial erythematous papules, spreading to her neck and hands. Patient 3 showed purplish eyelids with peri-orbital swelling, generalized edema involving all her limbs. Creatine kinase (CK) levels were markedly elevated in all the patients, ranging from 6 000 IU/L to 28 819 IU/L. Anti-SRP antibody was identified in cases 1, and anti-NXP2 antibodies were confirmed in cases 2 and 3. MRI of both thighs in all the patients showed profound muscle and fascial edema. Muscle pathology of patient 1 showed prominent fiber variation and endomysial fibrosis, with overexpression of MHC-Ⅰ. While muscle pathology in patients 2 and 3 showed scattered fiber necrosis, regeneration, endomysial edema without inflammatory cell infiltration. All the patients were diagnosed with idiopathic inflammatory myopathy and failed to the initial treatment including adequate glucocorticoids and high-dose immunoglobulin therapy. Other immunosuppressants (methotrexate, cyclophosphamide) were also tried in cases 2 and 3 with poor response. Then all the patients were treated with rituximab combined with glucocorticoids. Patient 1 regained normal strength and discontinued rituximab at the end of her last follow-up (2 years and 7 mouths). Though calcinosis developed during the follow-up period, significant improvement was noticed in cases 2 and 3 (both regained the ability to walk independently) at the end of their last follow-up after 2 years and 8 months, 3 years and 2 months respectively. Long-term rituximab therapy may improve the prognosis of refractory idiopathic inflammatory myopathy, especially with positive anti-SRP and anti-NXP2 antibodies.

Clinical and immunological characteristics of 88 cases of overlap myositis / 北京大学学报(医学版)

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the clinical and immunological characteristics of overlap myositis (OM) patients.@*METHODS@#The data of 368 patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs) admitted to Peking University People's Hospital from January 2004 to August 2020 were analyzed retrospectively, including demographic characteristics, clinical characteristics (including fever, Gottron' s sign/papules, Heliotrope rash, V-sign, Shawl sign, Mechanic' s hands, skin ulceration, periungual erythema, subcutaneous calcinosis, dysphagia, myalgia, myasthenia, arthritis, Raynaud' s phenomenon, interstitial lung disease, pulmonary hypertension and myocardial involvement), laboratory characteristics, immunological characteristics [including antinuclear antibodies, rheumatoid factors, myositis-associated autoantibodies (MAAs) and myositis-specific autoantibodies (MSAs)] and survival. The clinical and immunological characteristics and prognostic differences of OM and non-OM were compared. The Kaplan-Meier and Log Rank methods were used to analyze the survival.@*RESULTS@#A total of 368 patients were included. 23.9% (88/368) of IIMs patients were OM patients. Among the 88 OM patients, 85.2% (75/88) of them were female, and the median interval between disease onset and diagnosis was 13.5 months. The incidence of overlapped connective tissue diseases in the OM patients was dermatomyositis (DM) in 60.2%, polymyositis (PM) in 3.4%, immune-mediated necrotizing myopathy (IMNM) in 2.3% and anti-synthetase syndrome (ASS) in 34.1%. Compared with the non-OM patients, the proportion of the females in the OM patients was higher (85.2% vs. 72.1%, P=0.016), the OM patients had longer disease duration [13.5(4.5, 48.0) months vs. 4.0(2.0, 12.0) months, P < 0.001]. As for clinical characteristics, compared with the non-OM patients, the incidence of V-sign (25.0% vs. 44.6%, P=0.001) and periungual erythema (8.0% vs. 19.6%, P=0.013) were lower; the incidence of Raynaud's phenomenon (14.8% vs. 1.8%, P < 0.001), interstitial pneumonia (88.6% vs. 72.1%, P=0.001), pulmonary hypertension (22.7% vs. 7.5%, P < 0.001) and myocardial involvement (18.2% vs. 9.3%, P=0.033) were higher. As for immunological characteristics, compared with the non-OM patients, the incidence of elevated aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (31.8% vs. 45.0%, P=0.035) was lower and elevated C-reactive protein (CRP) (58.0% vs. 44.6%, P=0.037) was higher; the positive rates of antinuclear antibodies (ANA) (85.1% vs. 63.4%, P=0.001) and rheumatoid factors (RF) (40.2% vs. 17.8%, P < 0.001) and anti-Ro-52 (71.6% vs. 56.1%, P=0.038) in serum were higher. There was no significant difference in the survival between the OM patients and non-OM patients.@*CONCLUSION@#Pulmonary hypertension and myocardial involvement were frequently observed in OM.

Juvenile idiopathic inflammatory myopathies: A clinicopathological study with emphasis on muscle histology

Background: Juvenile idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (JIIM) are rare and heterogeneous. Subtype identification is important for treatment. Materials and Methods: Patients below 18 years diagnosed as idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM) according to the Bohan and Peter criteria between January 2010 and May 2015 were evaluated with muscle biopsy in the four domains: muscle fiber, inflammation, connective tissue, and vascular, with basic panel of histochemical stains as per recommendations of the European Neuromuscular center (ENMC) workshop 2015. Immunohistochemistry with CD 31 was done to assess capillary density. Results: JIIM constituted 15.25% of IIM with juvenile dermatomyositis (JDM) being the most common subgroup (24/27) followed by juvenile overlap myositis (JOM) (3/27) in association with systemic lupus erythematosus (2) and systemic sclerosis (1). Muscle biopsy in JDM was characterized by perifascicular atrophy, necrosis, degeneration, and regeneration in all and the other features included perivascular inflammation (21), lymphoid aggregates (2), mitochondrial abnormalities (9), sarcoplasmic vacuoles (6), capillary dropout (5), capillary dilatation (6), and perimysial fibrosis (14). JOM was characterized by auto-antibodies and perivascular inflammation. Conclusion: JIIMs were rare and JDM was the most common subtype. Muscle biopsy evaluation as per ENMC criteria characterized the subgroups.

Miopatías necrotizantes autoinmunes: reconocimiento como nuevo subgrupo de miopatía inflamatoria idiopática / Autoimmune necrotizing myopathies: recognition as a new subgroup of idiopathic inflammatory myopathy

Miopatía Necrotizante Autoinmune (MNA) fue reconocida como nuevo sub-grupo de miositis luego de observar en biopsias musculares la presencia de necro-sis con escaso o ausente infiltrado inflamatorio, sumado a la expresión de dos an-ticuerpos específicos de miositis (Anticuerpo anti Partícula de Reconocimiento de Señal, anti-SRP; y Anticuerpo anti Hidroxi-3-metilglutaril-CoA reductasa, anti-HM-GCR), ambos fuertemente asociados al hallazgo histológico descrito y a fenotipos clínicos característicos a cada anticuerpo, los cuales comparten importantes simi-litudes representadas por severa debilidad muscular proximal, gran elevación de creatinkinasa (CK), escasa manifestación de síntomas y signos extramusculares, y resistencia al uso de inmunosupresión habitual. Si bien en primera instancia los criterios de clasificación propuestos estaban basados en la histología, la obser-vación de necrosis en otros subgrupos de miositis, sumado a la homogeneidad del comportamiento clínico de pacientes que expresaban anticuerpos anti-SRP o anti-HMGCR independiente de la histología presentada, llevó en el año 2016 al Grupo de Trabajo del Centro Europeo Neuromuscular (ENMC) a establecer crite-rios diagnósticos de MNA basados en el comportamiento clínico (debilidad mus-cular proximal con CK total elevada) más la presencia del anticuerpo respectivo (anti-SRP o anti-HMGCR), reservando la necesidad de realizar biopsia muscular en el caso que la serología resulte negativa, siendo así reconocidas tres entidades distintas de MNA: Miopatía anti-SRP, Miopatía anti-HMGCR y Miopatía Necroti-zante seronegativa. La presente revisión expresa el actual conocimiento de MNA y sus subtipos, refiriéndose a aspectos históricos, clínicos, histológicos, inmuno-patológicos, y de pronóstico y tratamiento.

Necrotizing autoinmune myopathy (NAM) was recognized as a new sub-group of myositis after the observation of necrosis with mild or absent inflam-matory infiltrates in muscle biopsies, in addition of expression of two specific myositis antibodies (antiSRP and antiHMGCR), which are strongly associated to the mentioned hystologic findings, with different clinical phenotypes depending on the presence of each antibody, but sharing some features like severe proximal muscle weakness, significant elevation of creatin phosphokinase (CK), mild ex-tramuscular involvement and resistance to commonly used immunosupressants. The first proposed approach to classification criteria was hystology-based, none-theless the observation of necrosis in some other types of myositis and the homo-geneity of clinical features in patients expressing antiSRP or antiHMGCR despite the hystologic findings led to a new classification scheme leaded by the European Neuromuscular Center in 2016, which recognizes thre different clinical entities of NAM, based on the antibody expression plus the presence of proximal muscle weakness, relying hystology to a secondary place thus eliminating the need for immediate biopsy to stablish a diagnosis: those are antiSRP myopathy, antiHMG-CR myopathy and seronegative necrotizing myopathy, being the last one the only needing muscle biopsy. The present review shows the actual knowledge about NAM and its subtypes, referring to hystoric, clinical, hystologic, immunopatholog-ic, prognostic and therapeutic issues.

The expression and significance of Th17 cell/regulatory T cells in peripheral blood of patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathy / 中华风湿病学杂志

Objective To explore the expression and their significance of peripheral Th17 cells and regulatory T cells (Tregs) in idiopathic inflammatory myopathy,and analyze the relationship between the expression and clinical indicators,imaging and pathological changes.Methods Clinical data,laboratory tests,imaging and pathological changes of IIM cases (n=85) and healthy controls (n=70) were enrolled.Clinical data included the classification,age,gender,course of the disease;laboratory tests including erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR),C-reactive protein (CRP),creatine kinase (CK),creatine kinase isoenzyme-MB (CKMB),lactate dehydrogenase (LDH),hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase (HBDH).The level of peripheral Th17,Treg cells and clinical indicators,laboratory tests,imaging and pathological changes were analyzed retrospectively.Since the data was disregarded from the normal distribution,the median four quantile method was used for statistical description.Two samples were compared with Mann-Whitney U test,and the correlation between variables was Spearman rank correlation analysis.Results ①) The levels of Th17 cells in the case group was not significantly different from that in the control group [6.18(3.42,13.65) cell/μl vs 7.42(5.02,11.13) cell/μl,P＞0.05],the levels of Treg cells in patients was significantly lower than that in the control group [21.25(12.48,35.67) cell/μl vs 36.95(30.37,47.12) cell/μl,P＜0.05],the ratio of Th17/Treg was also significantly higher than that in the control group [0.31(0.21,0.47) vs 0.18(0.14,0.31),P＜0.05].② Peripheral Treg cells levels were not correlated with ESR,CRP,CK-MB,LDH and HBDH (P＞0.05).Peripheral Treg cells levels were negatively correlated with CRP (r=-0.279,P＜0.05),but no correlated with ESR,CK-MB,LDH and HBDH (P＞0.05).③ According to the involvement of important organs,patients were classified into two groups:organ involvement group and non-organ involvement group.The levels of Treg cells in the organ involvement group was fewer than that in non-organ involvement group [16.54(8.84,27.34) cell/ul vs 24.87(14.44,43.37) cell/ul,P＜0.05],and the ratio of Th17/Treg in the organ involvement group was significantly higher than that in non-organ involvement group [0.41(0.29,0.68) vs 0.29(0.19,0.39),P＜0.05].④) Peripheral Th17 cells levels in patients with skeletal muscle inflammatory edema was significantly higher than that of non-inflammatory edema patients [10.70 (4.11,14.51) cell/μl vs 3.10 (1.27,5.15) cell/μl,Z=-2.460,P＜0.05].⑤ The levels of Th17,Treg cells and ratio of Th17/Treg did not correlate with pathological features of inflammatory infiltration (P＞0.05).Conclusion The absolute number of peripheral Treg cells decreases significantly in IIM,and correlates with CRP.Patients with organ involvement have fewer Treg cells,and there is imbalance between Th17 and Treg.When muscle MRI presents with inflammatory edema,patients may have high level of Th17 cells.Our results suggest that Treg cells may play an important role in the pathogenesis of IIM.

Clinical significance of inflammatory biomarkers in distinguishing concurrent bacterial infection from idiopathic inflammatory myopathy / 中华风湿病学杂志

Objective To understand the diagnostic values of procalcitonin (PCT),C-reactive protein (CRP),erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR),white blood cell (WBC) and neutmphilic granulocyte ratio (NE％) in distinguishing concurrent bacterial infection from idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (ⅡM).Methods Clinical data and laboratory examinations of 118 ⅡM patients were collected.The ⅡM patients were assigned to the bacterial infection group (n=66) or the non-infection group (n=52).The levels of PCT,CRP,ESR,WBC and NE％ were compared by the Mann-Whitney U tests between the two groups and receiver operating characteristic curves were generated in order to evaluate the diagnostic value.Results The levels of PCT (0.06 ng/ml,0.03 ng/ml,U=2.637,P＜0.01);CRP (15.80 mg/L,4.40 mg/L,U=5.944,P＜0.01);ESR (43.50 mm/1 h,27.00 mm/1 h,U=2.266,P＜0.05);WBC (9.85×109/L,7.70×109/L,U=2.675,P＜0.01) and NE％ (80.70％,75.75％,U=2.344,P＜0.01) were significantly higher in the ⅡM patient group with concurrent infection than in the noninfection ⅡM patient group.CRP showed the highest diagnostic value with sensitivity,specificity,positive predictive value and negative predictive value of 72.7％,82.7％,84.2％ and 70.5％,respectively.Conclusion The inflammatory biomarkers PCT,CRP,ESR,WBC and NE％ offer diagnostic accuracy in detecting bacterial infection in ⅡM patients.Particularly,CRP is the most sensitive and specific biomarker indetecting bacterial infection in ⅡM patients.

Dermatomiositis en un adulto / Dermatomyositis in an adult

Se presenta el caso clínico de un adulto de 37 años de edad, quien presentó, a finales del 2010, síntomas de debilidad muscular y fiebre, que se agravaron progresivamente al aumentar la fatiga y manifestar dificultad respiratoria. En el 2012 fue ingresado en estado crítico en la Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos del Hospital General Docente "Dr. Juan Bruno Zayas Alfonso", debido a daño multiorgánico. Se estudiaron los antecedentes epidemiológicos para determinar alguna causa infecciosa, y se aplicó el tratamiento con antimicrobianos, esteroides e inmunoglobulinas; posteriormente fue valorado por un equipo multidisciplinario que sugirió la presencia de lupus eritematoso sistémico. A pesar de que el paciente mostró mejoría, se mantuvo con fiebres periódicas; de manera que fue reevaluado y se le diagnosticó una dermatomiositis.

The case report of a 37 year adult is presented who, at the end of 2010 had muscle weakness and fever, which progressively worsened when fatigue increased and respiratory distress emerged. In the 2012 he was admitted in critical condition in the Intensive Care Unit from "Dr. Juan Bruno Zayas Alfonso" Teaching General Hospital, due to a multiorgans damage. The epidemiological records were studied to determine some infectious cause, and the treatment with antimicrobials, steroids and immunoglobulines was applied; later on it was evaluated by a multidisciplinary team which suggested the existence of systemic lupus erythematous. Although the patient showed improvement, he had periodic fevers, so that he was reevaluated and a dermatomyositis was diagnosed.

Experiencia con rituximab en miopatía inflamatoria idiopática refractaria / Experience with rituximab in refractory idiopathic inflammatory myopathy

Se describe las características clínicas y de laboratorio de dos pacientes que recibieron rituximab por miopatía inflamatoria idiopática (MII). Ellas eran refractarias a tratamiento convencional con DARMES, por lo que recibieron rituximab 1 gramo cada 14 días, en dos infusiones en ciclo semestral. En las historias clínicas se obtuvo los datos clínicos de fuerza muscular proximal, lesiones cutáneas patognomónicas, elevación de CPK, TGO, DHL y VSG, resultados de electromiografía, biopsia muscular y de piel. Ninguno de los dos casos presentó reacción medicamentosa ni infecciones durante y posterior a las infusiones. Rituximab mostró efectividad en la respuesta clínica y enzimática en estas pacientes con dermatomiositis refractarias a corticoides y DARMES tradicionales.

Clinical and laboratory characteristics of two patients who received rituximab for refractory idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM) are described. Patients were refractory to conventional treatment with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) so they received rituximab 1 g dose every 14 days in two biannual cycle infusions. Data of proximal muscle strength, pathognomonic skin lesions, CPK, SGOT, LDH and ESR, results of electromyography, muscle and skin biopsy were obtained from the medical records. None of the cases presented drug reaction or infections during and following infusions. Rituximab showed effectiveness in clinical and enzymatic response in patients with dermatomyositis refractory to corticosteroids and traditional DMARDs.

Aspectos da saúde reprodutiva em homens com miopatia inflamatória idiopática: um estudo multicêntrico / Reproductive health aspects in men with idiopathic inflammatory myopathy: a multicenter study

OBJETIVO: Avaliar a saúde reprodutiva de homens com miopatia inflamatória idiopática (MII) e compará-la com controles saudáveis. MÉTODOS: Vinte e cinco pacientes com MII (dermatomiosite ou polimiosite) foram avaliados com relação aos dados demográficos, exame urológico (incluindo parâmetros pubertários e função sexual/erétil), ultrassonografia testicular, perfil hormonal, análise seminal, características clínicas e tratamento. O grupo controle incluiu 25 homens saudáveis. RESULTADOS: A mediana da idade atual foi similar nos pacientes com MII e controles (24 versus 27 anos, P = 0,566). As frequências de atividade sexual, número de parceiras com gestações espontâneas após início da doença e uso de preservativo masculino foram significativamente menores nos pacientes com MII versus controles (60 por cento versus 96 por cento, P = 0,004; 16 por cento versus 60 por cento, P = 0,0031; 40 por cento versus 76 por cento, P = 0,021; respectivamente). Além disso, as frequências de atrofia testicular (28 por cento versus 4 por cento, P = 0,049), níveis elevados de FSH e/ou LH (25 por cento versus 0 por cento, P = 0,05) e alterações dos espermatozoides (40 por cento versus 0 por cento, P = 0,0006) foram estatisticamente maiores nos pacientes com MII quando comparados aos controles. As medianas das idades de início da doença e atual foram estatisticamente maiores nos pacientes com MII que apresentaram disfunção sexual/erétil versus sem disfunção (41 versus 12,5 anos, P = 0,014; 46 versus 21 anos, P = 0,027; respectivamente). Entretanto, comparando-se, pacientes com disfunção sexual/erétil e sem disfunção, nenhuma diferença foi evidenciada em relação à idade da espermarca, parâmetros de função gonadal, atividade da doença, enzimas musculares e tratamento...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate reproductive health of males with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM), and comparing them with a control group. METHODS: Demographic data, urologic evaluation (including pubertal parameters and sexual/erectile function), testicular ultrasound, hormone profile, semen analysis, clinical features, and treatment of 25 IIM patients were evaluated. The control group was composed of 25 healthy males. RESULTS: Median age of IIM patients was similar to that of the control group (24 versus 27 years, P = 0.566). The frequency of sexual activity, number of partners with spontaneous pregnancies after the onset of the disease, and use of condom were significantly lower in IIM patients than in the control group (60 percent versus 96 percent, P = 0.004; 16 percent versus 60 percent, P = 0.0031; 40 percent versus 76 percent, P = 0.021, respectively). Moreover, the frequency of testicular atrophy (28 percent versus 4 percent, P = 0.049), elevated levels of FSH and/or LH (25 percent versus 0 percent, P = 0.05), and sperm abnormalities (40 percent versus 0 percent, P = 0.0006) were statistically higher in IIM patients than in the control group. Median age of onset of IIM and current age were significantly higher in IIM patients with sexual/erectile dysfunction than in patients without this dysfunction (41 versus 12.5 years, P = 0.014; 46 versus 21 years, P = 0.027, respectively). On the other hand, differences in the age of spermarche, parameters of gonadal function, disease activity, muscle enzymes, and treatment were not observed between IIM patients with or without sexual/erectile dysfunction...

Minor sperm abnormalities in young male post-pubertal patients with juvenile dermatomyositis

The objective of the present study was to identify sperm abnormalities in young male patients with juvenile dermatomyositis (JDM). In 2005, 18 male JDM patients, diagnosed according to the criteria of Bohan and Peter, were followed at the Pediatric Rheumatology Unit and Rheumatology Division, of our Institution. Of the 18 males, 11 were pre-pubertal and 7 were post-pubertal. Two of 7 post-pubertal JDM male patients were excluded: one for orchidopexy for cryptorchidism and the other for testicular ectopia in the left testis. The remaining 5 post-pubertal JDM patients were prospectively evaluated on the basis of two semen analyses, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), urologic evaluation, testicular Doppler ultrasound hormone profile. The data of the JDM patients were compared with those of 5 age-matched healthy controls. The median age 18, was similar in JDM patients and controls. All JDM patients had teratozoospermia (abnormal sperm morphology), as did 4 (80 percent) of the controls. One of JDM patients had previous oligoasthenoteratozoospermia treated with intravenous cyclophosphamide with normalization of the number and concentration of the sperm after 5 years. All sperm parameters (sperm concentration, total sperm count and total motile sperm count by WHO, and sperm morphology by Kruger strict criteria), testicular volumes by Prader orchidometer and ultrasound, and hormones were similar in JDM patients compared with controls. The frequency of anti-sperm antibodies was similar in both groups. All JDM patients had minor sperm abnormalities in the head, midpiece, and/or tail of spermatozoids. Serial semen analyses in larger study populations are necessary to identify the extent and duration of sperm abnormalities in male patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies.

The Expression of Toll-like Receptors in Idiopathic Inflammatory Myopathies / 대한류마티스학회지

Objective: To investigate the expression of toll-like receptor (TLR)-2, 4 and 9 in idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs). Methods: The expression of TLR-2, 4 and 9 was measured by real-time RT-PCR and immunohistochemical stain (IHS) from muscle tissues in patients with IIMs and controls. Results: The expression levels of TLR-2, 4 and 9 in IIMs were significantly higher than controls. TLR-2, 4 and 9 were mainly expressed on sarcolemma of muscle fibers, perimysial vascular endothelium and infiltrating inflammatory cells in dermatomyositis, whereas, they were mainly expressed on sarcolemma of muscle fibers, destructed muscle fibers, and enodmysial infiltrating inflammatory cells in polymyositis. Conclusion: TLR-2, 4 and 9 were highly expressed in muscle tissue of IIMs. These results suggest that TLR-2, 4 and 9 play a role in pathogenesis of IIMs.