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A 54-year-old man with treatment-resistant myasthenia gravis (MG) saw his sleep quality and respiratory symptoms improve after being treated with at-home noninvasive ventilation (NIV) with volume-assured pressure support (VAPS), according to a case study. He “experienced marked improvement in sleep quality, fatigue, and daytime sleepiness”…

An abundance of events are afoot around the world to mark Rare Disease Day 2020 on Feb. 29. The activities are focused on heightening awareness about rare diseases and the hundreds of millions of individuals they are thought to affect. Patients, caregivers, and advocates worldwide will sport denim ribbons…

An anti-inflammatory molecule, known as the complement inhibitor zilucoplan, was seen to significantly ease disease severity in generalized myasthenia gravis (gMG) patients at its higher dose and to have a favorable safety profile, data from a Phase 2 clinical trial show. These results informed the dose chosen — 0.3 mg/kg…

Myasthenia gravis (MG) can occur in very elderly patients, a recent case report highlights. As such, there is a need for early diagnosis in this population, which can allow for better clinical outcomes. A case report with that finding, “Very late onset of myasthenia gravis: case report…

Treatment with Rituxan (rituximab) benefits patients with myasthenia gravis (MG) with either anti-acetylcholine receptor (AChR) or muscle-specific tyrosine kinases (MuSKs) antibodies, a study has found. Patients with MuSKs antibodies, however, may experience greater improvement, including less time to achieve remission, fewer exacerbations, and need for hospitalizations following treatment. The…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), a vast government bureaucracy, employs about 17,500 people and had a budget of $5.7 billion in 2019. Yet even with its enormous resources, the FDA these days relies more and more on patients to…

Receiving fewer plasma exchange, or plasmapheresis treatments and having poorer kidney function with lower filtration rates are risk factors for myasthenia relapses, a study suggests. Over a follow-up of 50 months, patients without relapses were found to have higher glomerular filtration…

The gleaming new Dutch headquarters of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), fronting Domenico Scarlattilaan in Amsterdam’s suburban Zuidas business district, finally opened for business last month — just over two years after the European Union decided to relocate the EMA to the Netherlands in the wake of Brexit.

The type of antibodies found in children with myasthenia gravis (MG) was the primary predictor of disease remission, or not requiring medication for one full year, a study showed.  Additional factors influencing remission were being younger than 10 years old at…

People with myasthenia gravis (MG) are at higher risk of developing serious infections than those without the condition, a recent study has found. Although more research into the causes is needed, this finding may have implications for prevention strategies such as vaccinations and preventive antibiotic use, the researchers said.