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Suhani Bhatnagar, who played the role of young Babita Phogat in Aamir Khan’s wrestling film. dangal, succumbed to dermatomyositis, a rare inflammatory disease, on Saturday and passed away in Delhi at the young age of 19. Her family revealed that the 19-year-old showed symptoms two months ago, while she was diagnosed with the disease just ten days ago.
Causes:
Suhani was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences on February 7 and died on February 16 after medical complications. In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Dr Shweta Singhai, Senior Rheumatology Consultant at Sakra World Hospital in Bengaluru, revealed, “The exact cause of dermatomyositis is unknown, but it may be due to a viral infection of the muscles, mainly due to a problem with the body’s immune system (when the body develops autoantibodies against its own muscles and other body tissues), bacterial infections, occasionally vaccines, environmental factors including ultraviolet radiation and air pollutants.
He added: “Sometimes it can be caused by medications such as statins that are used to lower cholesterol. It is also associated with an underlying malignancy in approximately 30-40% of patients and screening is necessary, especially if there is weight loss. It is a very rare disease that affects 2-3 people in every 1 lac population.”
Symptoms:
The health expert explained: “Dermatomyositis is a rare inflammatory disease that causes muscle weakness and a distinctive skin rash. The muscles of the shoulders, upper arms, hips, thighs, and neck show the most weakness. Therefore, the affected person finds it difficult to raise the arms above shoulder level and also to get up from a sitting position in a chair or on the floor. The rash is purplish in color, often found around the eyes, cheeks, front of the chest, or upper back. There may also be pain and swelling in the joints, inflammation of the muscle tissues of the heart and lungs, swelling and inflammation of the blood vessels that supply the skin and muscles.”
Dr Shweta Singhai explained, “The swallowing and breathing muscle can also be affected if left untreated leading to difficulty in swallowing and breathing. This is an emergency and must be treated immediately. The patient needs to be tested for muscle enzymes such as CPK and to rule out autoimmune causes with tests such as ANA. The patient may also require a PET scan to rule out malignancy. While there is no cure for dermatomyositis, the symptoms can be treated with medications, physical therapy, exercise, heat therapy, and rest.”
Treatment:
According to Dr. Shweta Singhai, the medications include:
- corticosteroids
- immunosuppressive medications such as –
- methotrexate,
- Mycophenolate mofetil,
- rituximab,
- Intravenous immunoglobulin, etc.
Other treatments according to Dr. Shweta Singhai include:
- Rest
- Avoid sun exposure
- Use sunscreen and
- Photoprotective clothing.