Hello classmates and Professor
I chose to write my discussion on a disease called Polymyositis or (PM). Polymyositis is a muscle disease that involves inflammation of the muscles or associated tissues, such as the blood vessels that supply the muscles. A myopathy is a muscle disease, and inflammation is response to cell damage. PM is not a genetic disorder, although there may be genetic factors that make it more or less likely that an inflammatory myopathy will develop. In fact, in most cases, the cause of an inflammatory myopathy is unclear. For some reason, the body’s immune system turns against its own muscles and damages muscle tissue in an autoimmune process. In PM, the inflammatory cells of the immune system directly attack muscle fibers.
(PM) is more common in females than males and usually begins after age 20. Over a period of weeks or months, several muscles become weak and gradually get weaker. Most affected are the muscles of the hips and thighs, the upper arms, the top part of the back, the shoulder area and the muscles that move the neck. Many people with PM have pain or …show more content…
Some people recover completely, while others experience greatly diminished symptoms for long periods of time. Several years of treatment to suppress the immune system may be necessary to achieve these results. Those who don’t recover completely may need to continue on at least a low dose of medication to control the autoimmune attack of PM throughout their lives. Drugs that suppress the immune system are the mainstay of therapy for PM. Many people eventually recover much or all of their muscle strength and function, although they may relapse and lose function if they stop taking medications.
One research team is studying inflammatory myopathies in dogs. These diseases appear to be similar in dogs and humans, and it is believed that this project may generate deeper understanding of human PM, and lead to new tools for diagnosis and
I chose to write my discussion on a disease called Polymyositis or (PM). Polymyositis is a muscle disease that involves inflammation of the muscles or associated tissues, such as the blood vessels that supply the muscles. A myopathy is a muscle disease, and inflammation is response to cell damage. PM is not a genetic disorder, although there may be genetic factors that make it more or less likely that an inflammatory myopathy will develop. In fact, in most cases, the cause of an inflammatory myopathy is unclear. For some reason, the body’s immune system turns against its own muscles and damages muscle tissue in an autoimmune process. In PM, the inflammatory cells of the immune system directly attack muscle fibers.
(PM) is more common in females than males and usually begins after age 20. Over a period of weeks or months, several muscles become weak and gradually get weaker. Most affected are the muscles of the hips and thighs, the upper arms, the top part of the back, the shoulder area and the muscles that move the neck. Many people with PM have pain or …show more content…
Some people recover completely, while others experience greatly diminished symptoms for long periods of time. Several years of treatment to suppress the immune system may be necessary to achieve these results. Those who don’t recover completely may need to continue on at least a low dose of medication to control the autoimmune attack of PM throughout their lives. Drugs that suppress the immune system are the mainstay of therapy for PM. Many people eventually recover much or all of their muscle strength and function, although they may relapse and lose function if they stop taking medications.
One research team is studying inflammatory myopathies in dogs. These diseases appear to be similar in dogs and humans, and it is believed that this project may generate deeper understanding of human PM, and lead to new tools for diagnosis and