Polymyositis is a rare, chronic inflammation of the muscles that causes weakness. Polymyositis causes weakness in the muscles that control movement in the body. Over time this disease worsens, causing limitations in your ability to function.
Symptoms of Polymyositis include weakness and loss of muscle strength or control. This often occurs in the shoulders, hips and legs. Polymyositis can also weaken the muscles in the throat, causing difficulty with speaking and swallowing. The symptoms frequently develop over time, and can wax and wane.
The Social Security Administration recognizes Polymyositis as a disabling condition. It meets a Listing, which is essentially condition listed by the Social Security Administration as severe enough to warrant a finding of disability if certain criteria are met.
Polymyositis can be found in the Social Security Administration’s Listing 14.05. To be found disabled, you must have the following:
- Shoulder or hip/pelvic muscle weakness that impacts your ability to walk or use your arm and hands effectively; or
- Impaired swallowing that leads to aspiration (food or liquids in your lungs); or
- Impaired breathing due to muscle weakness in the chest;
- Calcium deposits that limit your ability to walk or affect your digestion; or
- Repeated symptoms with two of the following symptoms: 1. Severe fatigue; 2. Fever; .3 Malaise; 4. Involuntary weight loss; and one of the following:
- Limitation of activities of daily living;
- Limitations of maintaining social functioning;
- Limitation in completing tasks in a timely manner due to deficiencies in concentration, persistence or pace.
The attorneys at Katz Friedman have been successful in winning cases involving Polymyositis and establishing that their clients were disabled as a result of the condition.
In Social Security Disability claims involving Polymyositis, we will always obtain your relevant medical records and submit them to the Social Security Administration for review.
We will likely write a letter to your treating physician, explaining the Social Security Administration’s definition of Polymyositis and asking your doctor to verify that you meet the necessary conditions to be found disabled.
Whether you’ve already started the application process or are still thinking about applying, we are here to help you. Our lawyers would be happy to discuss the details of your disability claim no matter what stage of the process you are in.
We have offices throughout the state of Illinois, including: Chicago, Wheaton, Rockford, Belvidere, Dekalb, Decatur, Springfield, Bloomington, Normal, Mattoon, Urbana, Danville, Quincy and Mt. Vernon.
Our firm has a long history of fighting for the rights of injured workers which spans more than half a century.
KATZ FRIEDMAN Eisenstein, Johnson, Bareck & Bertuca
The Illinois Social Security Disability Attorneys
77 W. Washington, 20th Floor
Chicago, IL 60602
Toll Free: 1-312-724-5846 (IL)
Toll Free: 1-800-626-5556 (US)