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Cardiac involvement in newly diagnosed patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies is associated with skeletal

Balsam Hanna1, Christian L Polte2, Egidija Sakiniene3

  • 1Department of Rheumatology and Inflammation Research, Institute of Medicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg; and Department of Rheumatology, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden. balsam.hanna@vgregion.se.

Clinical and Experimental Rheumatology
|February 25, 2026
PubMed

Insights

Cardiac involvement is common in newly diagnosed idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM) and linked to skeletal muscle disease severity. This study identified key disease markers indicating heart involvement in IIM patients.

Area of Science:

  • Rheumatology
  • Cardiology
  • Immunology

Background:

  • Idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM) can impact multiple organs, including the heart, leading to poor prognosis.
  • Cardiac involvement in IIM may share pathological mechanisms with skeletal muscle disease.
  • Severe skeletal muscle involvement might indicate cardiac involvement in IIM patients.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify disease-related parameters indicating cardiac involvement in newly diagnosed IIM patients.
  • To investigate the association between skeletal muscle involvement and cardiac conditions in IIM.

Main Methods:

  • Prospective study of 34 newly diagnosed IIM patients and 9 healthy controls.
  • Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) for cardiac assessment.
  • Blood analyses for skeletal muscle markers and IIM-specific disease features.

Main Results:

  • Cardiac involvement detected by CMR in 47% of new IIM diagnoses (myocarditis, pericarditis).
  • IIM patients with cardiac involvement showed more myositis and higher muscle inflammation markers (myoglobin, ALT, AST).
  • Elevated cardiac troponin I (cTnI) correlated with myositis and muscle damage markers.

Conclusions:

  • Cardiac involvement is frequent at diagnosis in IIM patients.
  • The severity of skeletal muscle involvement is closely linked to cardiac involvement in IIM.
Abstract

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