People with myasthenia gravis (MG) benefit from thymectomy — surgery to remove the thymus gland — regardless of whether they have early- or late-onset disease or a tumor in the thymus, a study from Germany has found. The study, “The impact of thymectomy in subgroups of Myasthenia…
Note: This story was updated June 28, 2023, to correct the time frame of the ADAPT-SC+ clinical trial, in which patients will be treated for up to 3.5 years. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Argenx’s under-the-skin formulation of efgartigimod, now called Vyvgart Hytrulo,…
Barriers posed by social determinants of health can lead to a complex set of challenges — most centered on financial worry and mental health — for people with generalized myasthenia gravis (gMG), according to a small study done in the U.S. Researchers found that these challenges had an impact…
Regulators in China approved Soliris (eculizumab) for adults with hard-to-treat (refractory) generalized myasthenia gravis (gMG) who test positive for anti-acetylcholine receptor (AChR) antibodies. With this approval, Soliris is now the first complement inhibitor available to treat gMG in the country, according to AstraZeneca, the company that…
Composition of the fungal species present in the gut — known as the fungal gut microbiota — does not differ significantly between people with myasthenia gravis (MG) and those with other neurological disorders or healthy people. That’s according to an analysis of the fungal gut microbiota of participants in…
The direct costs of myasthenia gravis (MG) are about four times higher than for the general population and even higher when disease symptoms worsen during an exacerbation, according to a study from Italy. The study, “Real world study on prevalence, treatment and economic burden of myasthenia gravis in…
A subset of immune cells called natural killer (NK) cells are elevated in the blood of myasthenia gravis (MG) patients with active disease symptoms, where they may promote an autoimmune response, according to a recent study. These cells, which house the CXCR5 protein on their surface, was linked to…
Despite current treatments, myasthenia gravis (MG) still poses a moderate burden on patients, according to data from a digital study of MG communities around the world. Emotional and/or psychological coexisting illnesses also had a considerable impact on the participants’ quality of life, work, and studies,…
The rate of death from myasthenia gravis (MG) generally increases with age, but it peaks among teenage boys and older adults — in both men and women — according to a study from China. Researchers also observed that the rate of death is showing an increasing trend over the…
The single breath count test (SBCT), a noninvasive and inexpensive pulmonary function test, may help evaluate respiratory function and identify when symptoms worsen with myasthenia gravis (MG), a review of several studies has found. A cutoff value of 25 or higher in the SBCT was indicative of normal respiratory…
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