Idiopathic inflammatory myopathy: treatment options

Idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM) comprises a group of rare disorders in which there is an immune-mediated attack on skeletal muscle, the consequence of which is muscle damage and weakness in the patient. As in other inflammatory diseases, the general approach to therapy is use of immunosuppressive agents. Many options exist for IIM treatment, but therapeutic approaches are based mostly on empirical evidence and small studies, many of which are uncontrolled. Recently, new agents have been designed to target specific components of the immune response, and they offer hope for more effective or safer IIM therapy.