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Observational Study
. 2020 Aug;62(2):254-258.
doi: 10.1002/mus.26918. Epub 2020 May 22.

COVID-19 in patients with myasthenia gravis

Pria Anand  1 , Michaël C C Slama  2   3 , Michelle Kaku  1 , Charlene Ong  1 , Anna M Cervantes-Arslanian  1 , Lan Zhou  1 , William S David  2 , Amanda C Guidon  2
Affiliations
Observational Study

COVID-19 in patients with myasthenia gravis

Pria Anand et al. Muscle Nerve. 2020 Aug.

Abstract

Introduction: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has rapidly become a global pandemic, but little is known about its potential impact on patients with myasthenia gravis (MG).

Methods: We studied the clinical course of COVID-19 in five hospitalized patients with autoimmune MG (four with acetylcholine receptor antibodies, one with muscle-specific tyrosine kinase antibodies) between April 1, 2020-April 30-2020.

Results: Two patients required intubation for hypoxemic respiratory failure, whereas one required significant supplemental oxygen. One patient with previously stable MG had myasthenic exacerbation. One patient treated with tocilizumab for COVID-19 was successfully extubated. Two patients were treated for MG with intravenous immunoglobulin without thromboembolic complications.

Discussion: Our findings suggest that the clinical course and outcomes in patients with MG and COVID-19 are highly variable. Further large studies are needed to define best practices and determinants of outcomes in this unique population.

Keywords: COVID-19; immunosuppression; myasthenia gravis; neuroimmunology; neuromuscular disorders.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no potential conflicts of interest.

Comment in

References

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