Subcutaneous oedema as a presenting
feature of polymyositis/dermatomyositis: a poor prognostic indicator?
Lisa Dunkley and Ali S. M. Jawad
Department of Rheumatology, The Royal London Hospital, Bancroft Road, London, E1 4DG, UK
Corresponding address:
Ali S. M. Jawad,
Department of Rheumatology,
The Royal London Hospital,
Bancroft Road,
London E1 4DG, UK.
E-mail: alismjawad1@hotmail.com
Widespread subcutaneous oedema is a rare presenting feature of polymyositis (PM)/dermatomyositis
(DM). It was reported in the initial description of the disease by Wagner in 1877 but only
nine cases have since been reported in the literature and it is not listed in standard textbooks of
rheumatology. We present a further case of subcutaneous oedema as a presenting feature of
dermatomyositis, briefly review the existing literature and postulate that this presentation
represents a subset of the disease with a poorer prognosis.
Key words
Subcutaneous oedema; dermatomyositis.
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