Are muscle spasms a symptom of polymyositis?

Answer 1

No. Spasms are not generally considered a symptom of polymyositis (PM).

But having spasms does not mean you do not have polymyositis. You might, and the spasms from something else, like over exertion, dehydration, or lack of carbohydrates, etc. -- and then also have PM.

So, you should see your physician first.

Don't let your physician brush you off (like I let my first doctor do).

A good idea is to write down your symptoms. He'll still interview you, because that is part of his routine. But he might see something he didn't think to ask in what you wrote down.

If you feel muscle weakness, describe the pattern of muscle weakness. What activities and motions you are having difficulty with? Is there pain? Is there no pain? Details like that can be important clues.

Once you have a tentative diagnosis from your physician, then you can learn more about your condition on the web.

If you've been to your doctor, and he or she is coming up blank, then try a second doctor, then try the web.

If you try to self-diagnose, what you read might affect the symptoms you perceive. Your physician might discount what you say because of a feeling that what you've read is influencing what you perceive. I didn't Google my symptoms until after my doctor gave me a tentative diagnosis.

PM and DM (dermatomyositis) are very rare diseases. The incidence of both combined is somewhere between 1 in 10,000 and 1 in 100,000. Hopefully you have something else.

I'm a dermatomyositis patient. DM is a very similar disease to PM, the muscle symptoms are the same, but with DM you also get rashes. So I've read quite a bit about both. (However, the internal mechanism of PM and DM are different.) I have a cousin with PM.

I'm not a medical professional.