1. Clinical features and evolution of juvenile myasthenia gravis in a French cohort.
- Author
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Barraud, Coline, Desguerre, Isabelle, Barnerias, Christine, Gitiaux, Cyril, Boulay, Christophe, and Chabrol, Brigitte
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MYASTHENIA gravis treatment , *CHOLINERGIC receptors , *AGE factors in disease , *AUTOANTIBODIES , *HOSPITAL care , *IMMUNOADSORPTION , *INTENSIVE care units , *LONGITUDINAL method , *MYASTHENIA gravis , *TRANSFERASES , *DISEASE remission , *RETROSPECTIVE studies , *DISEASE progression - Abstract
Introduction: In this study we determined the clinical, paraclinical, and treatment-related features of juvenile myasthenia gravis (JMG) as well as the clinical course in a cohort of French children.Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of 40 patients with JMG at 2 French pediatric neurology departments from April 2004 to April 2014.Results: Among the patients, 70% had generalized JMG, 52% had positive acetylcholine receptor antibodies, 8% had muscle-specific kinase antibodies, and 40% were seronegative. Treatment with acetylcholinesterase inhibitors was effective and sufficient in 47% of patients. The 6 patients with generalized JMG treated with rituximab and/or immunoadsorption showed improvement. Thirty percent of the patients required hospitalization in an intensive care unit during follow-up (mean 4.7 years). Remission without treatment occurred in 18% of patients.Discussion: As with adults, JMG has high morbidity, particularly among children with generalized symptoms, and rituximab should be considered early in the course of the disease as a second-line treatment. Muscle Nerve 57: 603-609, 2018. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]- Published
- 2018
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