Juvenile Derm

Juvenile Myositis (JM), including Juvenile Dermatomyositis (JDM) and Juvenile Polymyositis (JPM), is a group of rare and life-threatening autoimmune diseases, in which the body’s immune system attacks its own cells and tissues.

Weak muscles and skin rash are the primary symptoms of JDM, while muscle weakness without a rash is the primary symptom of JPM.

Even within these designations, JM affects every child differently. Some children experience a mild form of the disease, while others follow a more severe and potentially more debilitating course. Some of the more onerous secondary symptoms are calcinosis, digestive (GI) tract complications, vasculitic ulcers and contractures.

To find out more information visit Cure JDM at www.curejm.org.

Support Groups

There are several Myositis Facebook support groups available. Check out the Myositis Support’s Facebook group page. There are also pages for Juvenile Dermatomyositis, Polymyositis, Inclusion Body Myositis, and general Myositis groups. Please refer to the Inflammatory Myopathy page for more details.