The GW Medical Faculty Associates Myositis Clinic is a multidisciplinary center focused on the evaluation and treatment of patients with inflammatory muscle diseases. The center provides clinical consultation to patients with established or suspected inflammatory muscle diseases.
GWU IRB#011216: “Identifying Genetic Risk and Protective Factors for Myositis” (MYOGEN)
The GWU Myositis Center is one of enrolling centers for Dr. Frederick W. Miller’s (NIEHS/NIH) multicenter international MYOGEN project, with a goal of enrolling 50 Caucasian juvenile and adult DM patients into the MYOGEN project. The study sample collection is underway. The overall goal of this project is to identify new genetic risk factors for juvenile and adult DM and genetic risk factors for certain disease complications.
GWU IRB#012106: “Outcome studies in Adult and Juvenile Dermatomyositis and Polymyositis”
In collaboration with NIH, Dr. Mamyrova continues to work with the Childhood Myositis Heterogeneity Study a registry of more than 450 patients with juvenile myositis. Recent projects include:
- analyses of illness features that distinguish Juvenile PM and muscular dystrophy,
- analyses of risk factors for mortality in Juvenile IIM.
GWU IRB#011007: “Environmental Exposures and Disease Flare in Adult and Juvenile Dermatomyositis and Polymyositis”
This project is aimed to assess environmental factors in relationship to increased disease activity (flare) in juvenile and adult dermatomyositis and polymyositis. An online survey was conducted for juvenile and adult DM and PM patients from US and Canada who were at least 1 year following diagnosis. The survey examined environmental exposures, including smoking, sun exposure, infections, medications, vaccines, stressful life events, and sports activities, during the 6 months prior to disease flare, to see if these exposures differ in patients who experienced a flare within the past 2 years compared to those who did not experience a disease flare. Dr. Mamyrova analyzes data (in progress).
GWU IRB#060829: “Health Care Transitioning for Pediatric Myositis Patients”
This project evaluates health care transitioning process for patients with juvenile onset myositis from pediatric to adult health providers. The data collection by using an anonymous online website for myositis patents and their families has been finished. Some results of the study have been published.
GWU IRB#010925: “International Myositis Classification Criteria Project”
This is an international project aimed to develop and validate classification criteria for myositis and its major subgroups in children and adults for basic and clinical research. As a result of this international multicenter project, new classification criteria for the IIM with easy-to-access measurements and symptoms have been developed that generally have superior performance compared to existing criteria. Validation of these new criteria is in progress.