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Concept information

Preferred term

dermatomyositis

Type

  • Topic

Definition

  • Information A subacute or chronic inflammatory disease of muscle and skin, marked by proximal muscle weakness and a characteristic skin rash. The illness occurs with approximately equal frequency in children and adults. The skin lesions usually take the form of a purplish rash (or less often an exfoliative dermatitis) involving the nose, cheeks, forehead, upper trunk, and arms. The disease is associated with a complement mediated intramuscular microangiopathy, leading to loss of capillaries, muscle ischemia, muscle-fiber necrosis, and perifascicular atrophy. The childhood form of this disease tends to evolve into a systemic vasculitis. Dermatomyositis may occur in association with malignant neoplasms.

Broader concept

In other languages

URI

https://lod.nal.usda.gov/nalt/154505

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RDF/XML TURTLE JSON-LD Created 3/27/12, last modified 1/14/13