ACR Meeting Abstracts

ACR Meeting Abstracts

  • Meetings
    • ACR Convergence 2024
    • ACR Convergence 2023
    • 2023 ACR/ARP PRSYM
    • ACR Convergence 2022
    • ACR Convergence 2021
    • ACR Convergence 2020
    • 2020 ACR/ARP PRSYM
    • 2019 ACR/ARP Annual Meeting
    • 2018-2009 Meetings
    • Download Abstracts
  • Keyword Index
  • Advanced Search
  • Your Favorites
    • Favorites
    • Login
    • View and print all favorites
    • Clear all your favorites
  • ACR Meetings

Abstract Number: 1967

Infectious Myopathies in an Urban Inflammatory Idiopathic Myopathy Cohort: Frequency and Impact on Disease Course and Treatment

Ana Valle1, Talia Meisel1, Xianhong Xie2 and Shereen Mahmood3, 1Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, NY, 2Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, 3Albert Einstein College of Medicine / Montefiore Medical Center, New York, NY

Meeting: ACR Convergence 2023

Keywords: Infection, Myositis

  • Tweet
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
  • Click to print (Opens in new window) Print
Session Information

Date: Tuesday, November 14, 2023

Title: (1945–1972) Muscle Biology, Myositis & Myopathies – Basic & Clinical Science Poster III

Session Type: Poster Session C

Session Time: 9:00AM-11:00AM

Background/Purpose: Over the last few decades, it has been established that multiple infections can mimic idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM). HIV, HTLV-1, and Lyme disease are all associated with chronic, progressive myopathies indistinguishable from IIM. While the similarities between IIM and these infectious myopathies have been reported, differences in disease course or treatment outcomes in this population with co-existing IIM and infectious myopathies has not been evaluated. Our aim was to compare the spectrum of organ involvement and treatment response in IIM patients with infections at risk for comorbid infectious myopathies in comparison to IIM patients without infections which may contribute to myositis.

Methods: A registry was created of Montefiore Medical Center patients that met 2017 EULAR/ACR classification criteria for IIM that included patient demographics, IIM subtype, clinical manifestations by organ system, comorbidities, and treatment history. Medication failure was defined by rheumatologist, discontinuation due to adverse effects, or medication change within 3 months. Medication control was defined by documented clinical improvement. Lyme and HTLV-1 statuses were based on confirmatory western blot testing and HIV status was confirmed by viral load. If these variables were positive, diagnosis date was also recorded. Statistical analysis was carried out with paired t-tests and signed rank tests. All p values < 0.05 were considered significant.

Results: Of our cohort of 153 IIM patients, 2 patients were found to have HIV, 9 were HTLV-1 positive, and one met criteria for active Lyme disease. Given the small number of patients with possible infectious myopathies, these were analyzed together in one group. Comparison of the IIM patients with infections and IIM patients without infectious comorbidities, we found a similar distribution of age, sex, Latinx ethnicity, and race between the two groups as shown in Table 1. When comparing IIM subtypes between the two groups, we found dermatomyositis was found more frequently in the non-infectious cohort (p = 0.01) and inclusion body myositis (IBM) was found more frequently in the infectious cohort (p = 0.03) (Table 1). There were no differences in cutaneous, gastrointestinal, or pulmonary manifestations between the two groups (Table 2). The rates of neoplasm and venous thrombosis complications were also comparable. There was no difference in steroid use or treatment outcomes for conventional disease-modifying agents or biologics between the two groups. In IIM patients with an infection, the infection had a median time of diagnosis 2 months prior to the IIM diagnosis.

Conclusion: While the type of IIM may be associated with infection, particularly IBM as has been reported in other literature, the presence of a infectious myopathy in IIM patients does not lead to a difference in organ involvement or treatment outcomes. The initial presentation of IIM is a crucial time for patients to be diagnosed with a concomitant infection. Further studies are needed to elucidate the link between IBM and specific infectious processes.

Supporting image 1

Table 1: Comparison of IIM patient demographics based on presence of infectious disease.

Supporting image 2

Table 2: Comparison of clinical Characteristics between IIM patients with and without infections associated with myositis.


Disclosures: A. Valle: None; T. Meisel: None; X. Xie: None; S. Mahmood: Qiagen, 6.

To cite this abstract in AMA style:

Valle A, Meisel T, Xie X, Mahmood S. Infectious Myopathies in an Urban Inflammatory Idiopathic Myopathy Cohort: Frequency and Impact on Disease Course and Treatment [abstract]. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2023; 75 (suppl 9). https://acrabstracts.org/abstract/infectious-myopathies-in-an-urban-inflammatory-idiopathic-myopathy-cohort-frequency-and-impact-on-disease-course-and-treatment/. Accessed .
  • Tweet
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
  • Click to print (Opens in new window) Print

« Back to ACR Convergence 2023

ACR Meeting Abstracts - https://acrabstracts.org/abstract/infectious-myopathies-in-an-urban-inflammatory-idiopathic-myopathy-cohort-frequency-and-impact-on-disease-course-and-treatment/

Advanced Search

Your Favorites

You can save and print a list of your favorite abstracts during your browser session by clicking the “Favorite” button at the bottom of any abstract. View your favorites »

All abstracts accepted to ACR Convergence are under media embargo once the ACR has notified presenters of their abstract’s acceptance. They may be presented at other meetings or published as manuscripts after this time but should not be discussed in non-scholarly venues or outlets. The following embargo policies are strictly enforced by the ACR.

Accepted abstracts are made available to the public online in advance of the meeting and are published in a special online supplement of our scientific journal, Arthritis & Rheumatology. Information contained in those abstracts may not be released until the abstracts appear online. In an exception to the media embargo, academic institutions, private organizations, and companies with products whose value may be influenced by information contained in an abstract may issue a press release to coincide with the availability of an ACR abstract on the ACR website. However, the ACR continues to require that information that goes beyond that contained in the abstract (e.g., discussion of the abstract done as part of editorial news coverage) is under media embargo until 10:00 AM ET on November 14, 2024. Journalists with access to embargoed information cannot release articles or editorial news coverage before this time. Editorial news coverage is considered original articles/videos developed by employed journalists to report facts, commentary, and subject matter expert quotes in a narrative form using a variety of sources (e.g., research, announcements, press releases, events, etc.).

Violation of this policy may result in the abstract being withdrawn from the meeting and other measures deemed appropriate. Authors are responsible for notifying colleagues, institutions, communications firms, and all other stakeholders related to the development or promotion of the abstract about this policy. If you have questions about the ACR abstract embargo policy, please contact ACR abstracts staff at [email protected].

Wiley

  • Online Journal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Permissions Policies
  • Cookie Preferences

© Copyright 2025 American College of Rheumatology