Actress Samantha Ruth Prabhu has been diagnosed with Myositis, an autoimmune disease. The star updated her Instagram followers on her health. Expressing her gratitude for all the support she has received since the release of the trailer for her newest movie, Yashodha, she shared, “It is this love and connection that I share with all of you, that gives me the strength to deal with the seemingly unending challenges that life throws at me. A few months back I was diagnosed with an autoimmune condition called myositis. I was hoping to share this after it had gone into remission. But it is taking a little longer than I hoped.”
In this context, we will understand about this disease.
What is Myositis?
Any illness that causes muscular inflammation is referred to as myositis. The most typical myositis symptoms are weakness, oedema, and pain. Infection, damage, autoimmune disorders, and adverse drug reactions are some of the causes of myositis. Depending on the aetiology, myositis has different treatments.
What causes myositis?
Any disorder that causes muscular inflammation can induce myositis. The following categories can be used to classify myositis causes:
- Inflammation-related
Myositis can be brought on by illnesses that cause inflammation throughout the body and affect the muscles. The most severe myositis causes, which necessitate long-term treatment, are frequently inflammatory diseases. Autoimmune diseases, in which the body attacks its own tissues, account for many of these reasons. Possible causes of severe myositis due to inflammatory diseases include-Dermatomyositis, Polymyositis, Body-inclusion myositis
Milder forms of myositis are typically brought on by other inflammatory disorders, such as Rheumatoid arthritis with lupus.
- Infection
The most frequent cause that result in myositis are viral infections. Rarely, myositis can also be brought on by bacteria, fungus, or other species. Direct invasion of muscle tissue by viruses or bacteria is possible, as is the release of chemicals that harm muscle fibres. Viruses that can cause myositis include HIV, the common cold and flu viruses, and others.
- Drugs
Many different treatments and medications have the potential to temporarily harm muscles. Myopathy rather than myositis may be used to describe the muscular issue because inflammation in the muscles is frequently misdiagnosed.
Myositis can develop immediately after receiving a medicine or it can develop months or years after taking a prescription. An interaction between two distinct drugs can sometimes be the cause. Rarely do drugs cause severe myositis.
- Injury
Muscle aches, swelling, and weakness may last for hours or days after engaging in strenuous exercise. Technically speaking, this is a type of myositis because inflammation contributes to these symptoms. After exertion or an injury, myositis symptoms almost invariably go away completely with rest and recuperation.
- Rhabdomyolysis
Rhabdomyolysis is the rapid breakdown of muscles. Rhabdomyolysis causes swelling, muscle discomfort, and weakening. Additionally, red or dark brown urine is possible.
Symptoms of Myositis:
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Myositis’ primary symptom is muscular weakness. The disease might be obvious or might only be discovered through testing. Myalgias, or discomfort in the muscles, may or may not be present.
Weakness brought on by inflammatory myositis disorders such as polymyositis, dermatomyositis, and others typically worsens gradually over weeks or months. Large muscle groups, including the neck, shoulders, hips, and back, are all impacted by the weakening. Typically, both sides’ muscles are impacted.
Myositis-related weakness can cause falls and make it challenging to get out of a chair or stand up after falling.
Additional signs and symptoms of inflammatory diseases include- skin on the hands becoming thicker, having trouble in swallowing, having trouble in breathing.
Symptoms of a viral infection, such as a runny nose, fever, cough, sore throat, or nausea and diarrhoea, are frequently present in people with myositis brought on by a virus. However, viral infection symptoms may disappear days or weeks before myositis symptoms appear.
Myositis can cause muscle soreness in some persons, but it rarely does in others.
Myositis rarely results in muscle soreness; instead, strain injuries or common illnesses like the flu and colds are to blame. Myalgias are the term for common muscular pains like these.
Diagnosis of myositis:
A patient’s symptoms of muscle weakness or other myositis-related indicators may lead a doctor to suspect myositis. Myositis tests include:
- A Blood Test
Increased levels of muscle enzymes like creatine kinase could indicate inflammatory muscular disease. Other blood exams look for unusual antibodies that could indicate an autoimmune disorder.
- MRI test
Images of the muscles are produced by a scanner that combines a powerful magnet and a computer. The location of myositis and changes in the muscles over time can be determined using an MRI scan.
- EMG
A doctor can test the way muscles react to electrical nerve signals by placing needle electrodes into the muscles. Myositis-related muscular weakness or injury can be detected using EMG.
- Muscular Biopsy
The best test for identifying myositis is this one. A weak muscle is located by a doctor, who then makes a tiny incision and extracts a tiny sample of muscle tissue for testing. In the majority of myositis patients, a muscle biopsy results in a final diagnosis.
Myositis is not always easy to diagnose, and there are numerous conditions that are more frequently responsible for muscle discomfort and weakening than myositis. These factors contribute to the length of the myositis diagnosis process.
Treatment of Myositis:
Depending on the reason, myositis therapy differs.
- Myositis-causing inflammatory disorders may need to be treated with immunosuppressive medications.
- Myositis brought on by infection is often brought on by a virus, hence no particular therapy is required. Bacterial myositis is rare and often treated with medications to stop the potentially fatal spread of the infection.
- Even though myositis seldom causes rhabdomyolysis, it can nonetheless harm the kidneys permanently. Hospitalization is necessary in order to administer huge volumes of continuous intravenous fluids to patients with rhabdomyolysis.
- Myositis brought on by statin medications typically resolves after a few weeks of quitting the medication.