What suspected myositis manifestations drive you to start empiric therapy before the work-up is complete?
Myositis specific antibodies and pathology results often take weeks to result. In which cases do you start therapy before the diagnosis is solidified (e.g., extremely elevated CK, respiratory failure)?
Answer from: at Community Practice
When evaluating a patient with myositis, I would consider starting immediate therapy when 1) my suspicion of myositis is high (i.e. characteristic rashes, compatible constellation of symptoms, very high CPK) and 2) the symptoms are severe. It would be the severity of the symptoms that would drive ho...