Evaluating the Incidence of Dermatomyositis Among US Veterans

TAKE-HOME MESSAGE

• This retrospective cohort study used medical records from the Veterans Affairs healthcare system to determine the incidence of dermatomyositis (DM). Of the 1,825,082 patients with dermatology or rheumatology outpatient encounters, there were 679 incident cases of DM. The patients were typically 50 to 69 years old and more often women than men.

• DM is a rare disease with a stable adjusted yearly incidence of 1.0 per 100,000 persons.

–  Joshua R. Ortego, MD

Abstract

The incidence of dermatomyositis (DM) has been reported as stable or increasing within several countries throughout the world. In the US, the incidence of DM has been reported as being between 0.1 and 1.8 cases per 100 000 person-years, but the incidence trend is largely unknown. This study evaluates the incidence of DM and its trend over time in the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care system.

JAMA Dermatology

Incidence of Dermatomyositis in a Nationwide Cohort Study of US Veterans

JAMA Dermatol 2022 Sep 21;[EPub Ahead of Print], CM Bolender, A Jimenez, JT Clarke, TM Willson, VW Stevens, JLW Rhoads

Bolender CM, Jimenez A, Clarke JT, Willson TM, Stevens VW, Rhoads JLW. Incidence of Dermatomyositis in a Nationwide Cohort Study of US Veterans. JAMA Dermatol. 2022 Sep 21. doi: 10.1001/jamadermatol.2022.3112. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36129722.