One in five adults with dermatomyositis discontinues immunomodulators at a median of three years

In the United States, an expert center studied a cohort of 243 adults with dermatomyositis followed between 2013 and 2020 and treated with at least one systemic immunomodulator (corticosteroids, immunoglobulins, methotrexate, tofacitinib…). Their follow-up shows that:

  • 19% were able to stop all immune-modulating therapy within a median of 37 months;
  • this cessation was 2.7 times more frequent in the amyopathic form of dermatomyositis than in its form with muscle involvement;
  • the presence of anti-MDA5, anti-NXP2 and anti-SAE1 autoantibodies is also associated with an increased probability of discontinuation of immunomodulators.

 

Cessation of immunomodulatory medication use in dermatomyositis: a single center cohort study. Cho SK, Casciola-Rosen L, Kapoor P et al. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2022 Jul 6.