Description

Benbassat et al identified risk factors associated with increased mortality in patients with dermatomyositis or polymyositis. Stepwise logistic regression and actuarial techniques were used to analyze prognosis. The authors are from the Jadassah University Hospital and Soroka Medical Center in Israel.


 

The presence of an underlying malignancy was associated with a higher mortality rate.

 

Unfavorable prognostic factors found to be independent:

(1) older age (> 60 years)

(2) fever (> 38°C)

(3) leukocytosis (> 10,000 per µL) at diagnosis

(4) failure to achieve a clinical remission

 

Unfavorable prognostic factors of borderline significance:

(5) shorter disease history (< 7 months between onset and diagnosis)

(6) dysphagia

 

Most common causes of death in patients:

(1) malignancy

(2) pulmonary complications

(3) ischemic heart disease

(4) uremia

 

Factors found not to have prognostic significance:

(1) history and physical examination: arthritis, Raynaud's phenomenon, blood pressure, splenomegaly, gender

(2) electrophysiologic measures: EMG abnormalities, ECG abnormalities

(3) laboratory findings: ESR, ANA, abnormal muscle histopathology, hemoglobin, level of muscle enzymes

 


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