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. 2020 Jan-Feb;23(1):32-37.
doi: 10.4103/aian.AIAN_302_19.

MuSK (Muscle Specific Kinase) Positive Myasthenia: Grave Prognosis or Undue Prejudice?

Priyanka Samal  1 , Vinay Goyal  1 , Mamta B Singh  1 , M V Padma Srivastava  1
Affiliations

MuSK (Muscle Specific Kinase) Positive Myasthenia: Grave Prognosis or Undue Prejudice?

Priyanka Samal et al. Ann Indian Acad Neurol. 2020 Jan-Feb.

Abstract

Objectives: Patients with muscle-specific kinase (MuSK)-positive myasthenia are generally considered to have a grave prognosis. We present our experience of patients with myasthenia with different antibody status. This is followed by a short discourse on previous studies and the current view on MuSK-positive myasthenia, focusing on the associated prejudice.

Materials and methods: This study compares 23 patients with MuSK-positive myasthenia with 55 patients with acetylcholine receptor-positive myasthenia and 9 patients with double-seronegative myasthenia at a tertiary level center.

Results: We did not find any significant difference in terms of clinical characteristics, treatment response to immunosuppressants, long-term prognosis, and quality of life.

Conclusion: Seropositivity for antibodies should not be used in isolation to guide the management or predict the prognosis. Undue negative prognostication may affect the morale of patient. Clinical features and response to therapy in addition to antibody status must be considered before planning therapy.

Keywords: MuSK; myasthenia; prognosis; quality of life; rituximab.

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Conflict of interest statement

There are no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Comparison of MGFA class at onset, maximum severity, and at last follow-up. Onset MGFA P = 0.59, max MGFA P = 0.63, last follow-up MGFA P = 0.91 AChR-MG: acetylcholine receptor–positive antibody myasthenia gravis; DN-MG: double-seronegative myasthenia gravis; MGFA: Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America; MuSK-MG: muscle-specific kinase myasthenia gravis
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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