Impact of Different Thymic Pathologies on the Clinical Course of Myasthenia Gravis : A Population Wide Study in Latvia

Abstract

Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoimmune disease characterized by autoantibody mediated postsynaptic failure of neuromuscular transmission. The thymus gland has a role in the pathogenesis of MG. The aim of this study was to determine (1) the prevalence of different thymic pathologies in the MG patient population of Latvia; (2) the potential impact of different thymus pathologies on the clinical course of MG; and (3) the effectiveness of surgical treatment of thymic pathologies in Latvia. The results showed that the most common thymus pathology among the patients with MG in Latvia is thymoma. Compared to the published data, the proportion of MG patients diagnosed with thymus hyperplasia in Latvia is very small. Thymus hyperplasia is uncommon among patients 60 years of age and older. MG onset for patients with thymoma is significantly later than that of patients with thymus hyperplasia. Almost all patients with thymoma or thymus hyperplasia develop a generalised form of MG. The presence of a thymus pathology does not significantly affect the electrophysiological test results, clinical symptom severity, frequency of disability or hospitalisation of the patients with MG. Thymectomy in patients with thymoma or thymus hyperplasia has no significant effect on relieving MG symptoms.