Main description:

Although dermatomyositis is a rare connective tissue disease, many physicians are confronted with the diagnosis and treatment of patients affected by this condition. Based on the vast personal experience of the authors, who have diagnosed, treated, and managed many dermatomyositis patients, this clinical guide provides dermatologists, rheumatologists, pediatricians, neurologists, and general practitioners with the keys to interpreting the clinical symptoms of dermatomyositis. Also included are algorithms to help the reader to make the correct diagnosis, as well as guidance on new diagnostic methods and treatment schemes.

Contents:

History of Dermatomyositis.- Classification of Dermatomyositis.- Diagnostic Criteria.- Epidemiology of Dermatomyositis.- Clinical Manifestations of Dermatomyositis.- Cutaneous Manifestations of Dermatomayositis.- Oral Manifestations of Dermatomyositis.- Musculoskeletal Involvement in Dermatomyositis.- Joint Involvement.- Cardiac Manifestations of Dematomyositis.- Complications of Dermatomyositis.- Pulmonary Complications of Dermatomyositis.- Gastrointestinal Complications of Dermatomyositis.- Ophthalmic Complications of Dermatomyositis.- Renal Complications of Dermatomyositis.- Complications of Central Nervous System in Dermatomyositis.- Pregnancy Complicated by Dermatomyositis.- Calcinosis in Dermatomyositis.- Internal Malignancy Associated with Dermatomyositis.- Clinical Variants of Dermatomyositis.- Classic Dermatomyositis in Adults.- Juvenile Dermatomyositis.- Amyopathic Dermatomyositis.- Paraneoplastic Dermatomyositis.- Overlap Syndromes.- Drug-Induced Dermatomyositis.- Other Idiopathic Inflammatory Myopathies.- Polymyositis.- "Inclusion Body" Myositis.- Orbital Myositis.- Eosinophilic Myositis/Perimyositis.- Eosinophilia-Myalgia Syndrome and Eosinophilic Fasciitis (Shulman Syndrome).- Laboratory Manifestations of Dermatomyositis.- Muscle Enzymes.- Autoantibodies.- Laboratory Assessments of Disease Activity in DM.- Pathology and Immunopathology of Dermatomyositis.- Diagnosis and Differential Diagnosis of DM.- Medical Evolution of Dermatomyositis.- Differential Diagnosis of Dermatomyositis.- Etiology and Pathogenesis.- Etiology of Dermatomyositis.- Pathogenesis of Dermatomyositis.- Pathophysiology, Hypotheses for Pathogenesis and Animal Models of DM.- Treatment of Dermatomyositis.- Pharmacologic Agents in the Treatment of DM.- Treatment of Cutaneous Manifestations and Complications of Dermatomyositis.- Non-pharmacological Treatment of Dermatomyositis, Physical Therapies and Rehabilitation of Dermatomyositis.- Management and Control.- Evolution and prognosis of Dermatomyositis.