Bmc Gastroenterol
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Review Case Reports
The concurrent association of inflammatory polymyositis and Crohn's ileo-colitis in a Sri Lankan man: a case report of a rare association and literature review.
Crohn's disease is a relapsing, systemic inflammatory disease affecting the gastrointestinal tract with associated extraintestinal manifestations and immune disorders. Among the few cases reported, the association of Crohn's disease with polymyositis varies in its complexity and severity. We report here the first known case of inflammatory polymyositis leading to rhabdomyolysis in a male patient diagnosed with Crohn's ileocolitis. ⋯ An unrecognized genetic predisposition or altered gut permeability causing disruption of the gut immune barrier triggering an immune response against skeletal muscles may have contributed to this unique association. Both polymyositis and Crohn's ileocolitis responded well to corticosteroids and azathioprine, which is supportive of their immune pathogenesis. Myositis can be considered to be a rare extraintestinal manifestation of Crohn's disease and can be used in the differential diagnosis of corticosteroid or hypokalemia-induced myopathy in Crohn's disease.