Lupus or systemic lupus erythematosus could be considered worse than myositis as it's often a highly unpredictable and even potentially more fatal disease because the systemic lupus erythematosus can aggressively attack multiple major organs in the body, like the brain, lungs and kidneys.
And myositis, mainly targets your muscles, although myositis an still become life threatening in some cases if it affects your heart and or breathing muscles, although neither condition is universally worse than the other.
People who usually get myositis are adults that are between the ages of 45 to 64 as well as children.
Although it can also depend heavily on the specific type of myositis that a person develops.
The main types of myositis, which can affect different groups in distinct ways include.
Viral Myositis, which is a temporary form of muscle inflammation that is common in children and teens.
Viral myositis is typically triggered shortly after recovering from a viral illness, such as the flu or the common cold.
Inclusion Body Myositis (IBM) is the myositis form that is the most prevalent type in older adults. Unlike the other forms, IBM predominantly affects men over the age of 50.
Polymyositis & Dermatomyositis are the most common types of inflammatory myopathies.
Polymyositis and Dermatomyositis affect women twice as often as men. While they can occur at any age, adults are typically diagnosed between ages 40 and 60, and children between ages 5 and 15.
The first signs of myositis are muscle weakness in your hips and shoulders, unusual fatigue and visibly distinctive skin rashes in certain types of myositis.
Myositis is a group of rare inflammatory muscle disease and the symptoms of myositis are usually subtle and develop slowly.
Muscle weakness is the hallmark symptom of myositis.
Because myositis affects the larger muscles close to the center of the body, which is your proximal muscles, you may first notice the muscle weakness during everyday activities.
Due to the muscle weakness in myositis it can lead to mobility issues, upper body issues and balance issues.
People with myositis often trip more often and have trouble catching themselves if they fall.
Myositis can also cause you to have trouble lifting objects overhead, washing or blow drying your hair or even reaching for high shelves.
And the muscle weakness with myositis can also cause difficulty in climbing stairs, standing up from a low chair or getting out of a car or other vehicle.
Other signs of myositis include extreme tiredness and muscle pain per myalgia.
A persistent lack of energy even after getting proper rest is also common in myositis and you may even feel suddenly exhausted after a short walk or even just standing for a few minutes.
And the myalgia can result in persistent muscle pain, soreness and or tenderness in the affected muscles, which is often also accompanied by stiffness.
When you have a specific type of myositis called dermatomyositis, an obvious rash is often the very first sign.
The rash can appear as a red or purple, patchy rash on your eyelids, face, knuckles, elbows or knees and scaly patches, sometimes called Gottron Papules can appear on the hands.
And you may have a shawl like redness over your shoulders and your upper chest.
Other early or accompanying signs of myositis include, difficulty swallowing, which can occasionally be the initial presenting symptom and breathing changes like a persistent dry cough, shortness of breath or hoarse voice.