Intravenous immunoglobulin therapy for refractory myositis.

The efficacy of polyvalent intravenous immunoglobulin therapy (IVIG) was evaluated in three patients with refractory myositis. Patients refractory to conventional therapy, such as corticosteroid administration, corticosteroid or cyclophosphamide pulse therapy [2 with dermatomyositis (DM), 1 with polymyositis (PM)] were treated with IVIG (0.4 g/kg daily) for 5 days. Clinical improvement was apparent within 1-2 months after IVIG and persisted for 19-23 months (DM patients) and 12 months (PM patient). No adverse effects were observed. Thus, IVIG may be considered an effective therapy for refractory myositis.