According to a recent article, researchers investigated the cause of deaths in the hospital in patients who were diagnosed with inflammatory myositis in a tertiary care center in Northern India.
Myositis is the inflammation or swelling of the muscles. There are two primary kinds of myositis:
- Polymyositis, which causes muscle weakness, usually in the muscles closest to the trunk of the body
- Dermatomyositis, which causes muscle weakness, plus a skin rash
Symptoms:
- Trouble rising from a chair
- Difficulty climbing stairs or lifting arms
- Tiredness after standing or walking
- Trouble swallowing or breathing
- Muscle pain and soreness that does not resolve after a few weeks
- Known elevations in muscle enzymes by blood tests
Research Methods and Conclusions
To come to this conclusion, researchers looked at the medical records and causes of death in adults and children with dermatomyositis, polymyositis, and anti-synthetase syndrome. They focused on the patients who died with these conditions between 2000 and 2018.
A total of 38 patients were examined under these qualifications. The median duration of their illness was a little over a year and a half. The most shocking news, however, was that the major cause of death for 24 of these patients was infection. Therefore, the research shows that in-hospital infections in Indian patients remains the number one cause of death in patients diagnosed with myositis.
