Cutaneous Outcome Measures of Adult Dermatomyositis

Dermatomyositis is an autoimmune skin disease marked by inflammation of the skin and muscle. The skin manifestations significantly impact quality of life and are difficult to treat. Therefore, clinical trials for effective therapies to treat the skin involvement in dermatomyositis are critical. There are many validated outcome measures that allow physicians to objectively evaluate response to treatment in clinical trials and in the clinic. This chapter reviews the following popular tools to assess skin severity in dermatomyositis: the Cutaneous Dermatomyositis Disease Area and Severity Index, the Physician Global Assessment, and the Cutaneous Assessment Tool-Binary Method. Based on validation studies outlined in this chapter, it appears that the Cutaneous Dermatomyositis Disease Area and Severity Index demonstrates superiority over the other tools and is a useful outcome measure for dermatomyositis.