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Case Reports
. 2009 Aug;24(4):715-21.
doi: 10.3346/jkms.2009.24.4.715. Epub 2009 Jul 30.

Clinical characteristics and outcomes of juvenile and adult dermatomyositis

Sang-Jun Na  1 , Seung Min Kim, Il Nam Sunwoo, Young-Chul Choi
Affiliations
Case Reports

Clinical characteristics and outcomes of juvenile and adult dermatomyositis

Sang-Jun Na et al. J Korean Med Sci. 2009 Aug.

Abstract

Dermatomyositis (DM) is an idiopathic inflammatory myopathy with bimodal onset age distribution. The age of onset is between 5-18 yr in juvenile DM and 45-64 yr in adult DM. DM has a distinct clinical manifestation characterized by proximal muscle weakness, skin rash, extramuscular manifestations (joint contracture, dysphagia, cardiac disturbances, pulmonary symptoms, subcutaneous calcifications), and associated disorders (connective tissue disease, systemic autoimmune diseases, malignancy). The pathogenesis of juvenile and adult DM is presumably similar but there are important differences in some of the clinical manifestations, associated disorders, and outcomes. In this study, we investigated the clinical characteristics and outcomes of 16 patients with juvenile DM and 48 with adult DM. This study recognizes distinctive characteristics of juvenile DM such as higher frequency of neck muscle involvement, subcutaneous calcifications, and better outcomes.

Keywords: Adult Dermatomyositis; Clinical Characteristics; Juvenile Dermatomyositis; Outcomes.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Survival curve of 16 patients with juvenile DM and 48 with adult DM. Number of available adult DM patients: 42 at 1-yr follow up, 40 at 3-yr follow up, and 38 at 9-yr follow up.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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