Myasthenia gravis
RSS feedHair dye implicated in myasthenic attacks
A 43-year-old woman was diagnosed with myasthenia gravis after a myasthenic crisis requiring intubation, intravenous immunoglobulins and corticosteroids. Taking pyridostigmine 60mg twice a day, she had another myasthenic attack three months later with fatigue, shortness of breath and headaches for a fortnight. Two weeks before each attack, the patient had dyed her hair red the … [Read more]
First-line rituximab as effective alone as in combination with corticosteroids in myasthenia gravis
The Nice University Hospital conducted a single–centre retrospective study based on data from 68 patients treated in thefirst line with rituximab for a generalised form of myasthenia gravis. It was severe in more than half the cases (MGFA score greater than or equal to 3) and with anti-MuSK autoantibodies in 4.76% of cases. In this cohort … [Read more]
A benefit-risk balance against anticholinesterase drugs in anti-MusK myasthenia gravis
Autoimmune myasthenia with anti-MuSK autoantibodies (about 8% of patients) has a unique phenotype, as does its response to treatment, particularly anticholinesterase drugs. The results of a retrospective study carried out in Italy on 202 patients followed up at an expert center demonstrate this: 81.6% of them were already on anticholinesterase medication prior to admission, of … [Read more]
Characteristics of juvenile myasthenia gravis – Interview with Frédérique Truffaut
Frédérique Truffaut works in the Myasthenia Gravis: etiology, pathophysiology & therapeutic approach team headed by Rozen Le Panse, within the Institute’s Center of Research in Myology. She has just published an article* in Science Reports on the specific features of juvenile myasthenia compared with myasthenia in adults. In what context did you carry out this … [Read more]
An indirect comparison of two innovative compounds in the treatment of myasthenia gravis
Efgartigimod (Vyvgart®) and ravulizumab (Ultomiris®) are two new-generation monoclonal antibodies, anti-FcRN and anti-C5 respectively, designed to treat refractory forms of generalised autoimmune myasthenia with positive autoantibodies against the acetylcholine receptor. German clinicians have attempted to compare their efficacy and safety indirectly: the results of the two main studies of one (ADAPT trial) and the other … [Read more]
Belgian recommendations for the management of myasthenia gravis
Following the sharing of experience in the field, and in view of the very rapid development of innovative therapies, Belgian clinicians have drawn up national recommendations for the management of patients suffering from myasthenia gravis : these recommendations were drawn up in February 2024 and cover both generalised myasthenia and ocular myasthenia, they take into … [Read more]
Successful use of CAR-T cells in simultaneous myasthenia gravis and Lambert-Eaton syndrome
A German team has reported the treatment with autologous anti-CD19 CAR-T cells of two women with both autoimmune myasthenia and Lambert-Eaton syndrome who had failed to respond to multiple immunotherapies. The two patients, who were wheelchair-dependent before the transplant, regained full mobility, enabling them to cycle and go hiking in the mountains, in particular, within … [Read more]
Myasthenia gravis: mycophenolate and methotrexate better tolerated than azathioprine
A UK national survey of 235 people with myasthenia gravis, 166 on azathioprine, 102 on mycophenolate and 40 on methotrexate, showed that : the most frequent adverse events were liver damage with azathioprine (23%), diarrhoea with mycophenolate (14%) and fatigue with methotrexate (18%); discontinuation of azathioprine due to adverse events was significantly more frequent than … [Read more]
Myasthenia gravis in France seen through the national health data system prism
In order to assess the incidence and prevalence of myasthenia gravis in France, a group of researchers from Auvergne analyzed data contained in the national health data system (SNDS) : the study covered the period 2008-2018, 331 patients were identified in the SNDS, enabling us to extrapolate an incidence of 50 per million inhabitants per … [Read more]
CAR-T cell-based dual therapy successfully tested in refractory myasthenia gravis
In a Letter to the Editor, Chinese clinicians report the case of a 64-year-old myasthenic patient who benefited from CAR-T cells targeting both the BCMA and CD19 antigens: the patient had had a classic course of refractory myasthenia over the seven years since his diagnosis in 2016, a protocol of induced depletion of B lymphocytes … [Read more]
