Myasthenia gravis in clinical practice

ABSTRACT Background: Myasthenia gravis is largely a treatable disease, but it can result in significant morbidity and even mortality, which can usually be avoided, or at least mitigated, with timely diagnosis and appropriate treatment of the disease. Objective: this review aims to summarize the ma...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Eduardo de Paula Estephan, José Pedro Soares Baima, Antonio Alberto Zambon
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Thieme Revinter Publicações 2022-08-01
Series:Arquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0004-282X2022000700257&tlng=en
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849738665454993408
author Eduardo de Paula Estephan
José Pedro Soares Baima
Antonio Alberto Zambon
author_facet Eduardo de Paula Estephan
José Pedro Soares Baima
Antonio Alberto Zambon
author_sort Eduardo de Paula Estephan
collection DOAJ
description ABSTRACT Background: Myasthenia gravis is largely a treatable disease, but it can result in significant morbidity and even mortality, which can usually be avoided, or at least mitigated, with timely diagnosis and appropriate treatment of the disease. Objective: this review aims to summarize the main practical aspects of the diagnostic approach, treatment and care of myasthenic patients. Methods: The authors performed a non-systematic critical review summarizing the main practical aspects of myasthenia gravis. Results: Most patients with myasthenia have autoantibodies targeted at acetylcholine receptors or, less commonly, muscle-specific kinase - MuSK. Electrophysiology plays an important role in the diagnosis of neuromuscular junction dysfunction. The central clinical manifestation of myasthenia gravis is fatigable muscle weakness, which can affect eye, bulbar, respiratory, and limb muscles. With rare exceptions, patients have a good response to symptomatic treatment, but corticosteroids and/or immunosuppressants are usually also necessary to obtain good control of the manifestations of the disease. Conclusion: Knowledge of the peculiar aspects of their clinical and electrophysiological presentations is important for the diagnosis. Likewise, specific treatment and response time to each drug are crucial for proper care.
format Article
id doaj-art-ed12bf3b5799478ba4736dd7f2e7f485
institution DOAJ
issn 1678-4227
language English
publishDate 2022-08-01
publisher Thieme Revinter Publicações
record_format Article
series Arquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria
spelling doaj-art-ed12bf3b5799478ba4736dd7f2e7f4852025-08-20T03:06:30ZengThieme Revinter PublicaçõesArquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria1678-42272022-08-01805 suppl 125726510.1590/0004-282x-anp-2022-s105Myasthenia gravis in clinical practiceEduardo de Paula Estephanhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-6807-1951José Pedro Soares Baimahttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-2708-1181Antonio Alberto Zambonhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-5323-3778ABSTRACT Background: Myasthenia gravis is largely a treatable disease, but it can result in significant morbidity and even mortality, which can usually be avoided, or at least mitigated, with timely diagnosis and appropriate treatment of the disease. Objective: this review aims to summarize the main practical aspects of the diagnostic approach, treatment and care of myasthenic patients. Methods: The authors performed a non-systematic critical review summarizing the main practical aspects of myasthenia gravis. Results: Most patients with myasthenia have autoantibodies targeted at acetylcholine receptors or, less commonly, muscle-specific kinase - MuSK. Electrophysiology plays an important role in the diagnosis of neuromuscular junction dysfunction. The central clinical manifestation of myasthenia gravis is fatigable muscle weakness, which can affect eye, bulbar, respiratory, and limb muscles. With rare exceptions, patients have a good response to symptomatic treatment, but corticosteroids and/or immunosuppressants are usually also necessary to obtain good control of the manifestations of the disease. Conclusion: Knowledge of the peculiar aspects of their clinical and electrophysiological presentations is important for the diagnosis. Likewise, specific treatment and response time to each drug are crucial for proper care.http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0004-282X2022000700257&tlng=enMyasthenia GravisNeuromuscular JunctionNeuromuscular DiseasesNeuromuscular Junction DiseasesPractice Guideline
spellingShingle Eduardo de Paula Estephan
José Pedro Soares Baima
Antonio Alberto Zambon
Myasthenia gravis in clinical practice
Arquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria
Myasthenia Gravis
Neuromuscular Junction
Neuromuscular Diseases
Neuromuscular Junction Diseases
Practice Guideline
title Myasthenia gravis in clinical practice
title_full Myasthenia gravis in clinical practice
title_fullStr Myasthenia gravis in clinical practice
title_full_unstemmed Myasthenia gravis in clinical practice
title_short Myasthenia gravis in clinical practice
title_sort myasthenia gravis in clinical practice
topic Myasthenia Gravis
Neuromuscular Junction
Neuromuscular Diseases
Neuromuscular Junction Diseases
Practice Guideline
url http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0004-282X2022000700257&tlng=en
work_keys_str_mv AT eduardodepaulaestephan myastheniagravisinclinicalpractice
AT josepedrosoaresbaima myastheniagravisinclinicalpractice
AT antonioalbertozambon myastheniagravisinclinicalpractice