TY - JOUR
T1 - Neuromyelitis optica in patients with myasthenia gravis who underwent thymectomy
AU - Kister, Ilya
AU - Gulati, Sandeep
AU - Boz, Cavit
AU - Bergamaschi, Roberto
AU - Piccolo, Guiseppe
AU - Oger, Joel
AU - Swerdlow, Michael L.
N1 - Copyright:
Copyright 2008 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2006
Y1 - 2006
N2 - Background: Myasthenia gravis (MG) and neuromyelitis optica (NMO, also known as Devic disease) are rare autoimmune disorders, with upper-limit prevalence estimates in the general population of 15 per 100 000 and 5 per 100 000, respectively. To our knowledge, an association between these diseases has not been previously reported. Objectives: To describe 4 patients with MG who developed NMO after thymectomy and to analyze possible causes of apparent increased prevalence of NMO among patients with MG. Design: Case series. Patients: Four patients with MG who underwent thymectomy. Interventions: None. Results: The prevalence ofMGwithin the published cohort of patients withNMOis more than 150 times higher than that in the general population. Conclusion: Dysregulation of B-cell autoimmunity in myasthenia, possibly exacerbated by loss of control over autoreactive cells as a result of thymectomy, may predispose patients to the development of NMO.
AB - Background: Myasthenia gravis (MG) and neuromyelitis optica (NMO, also known as Devic disease) are rare autoimmune disorders, with upper-limit prevalence estimates in the general population of 15 per 100 000 and 5 per 100 000, respectively. To our knowledge, an association between these diseases has not been previously reported. Objectives: To describe 4 patients with MG who developed NMO after thymectomy and to analyze possible causes of apparent increased prevalence of NMO among patients with MG. Design: Case series. Patients: Four patients with MG who underwent thymectomy. Interventions: None. Results: The prevalence ofMGwithin the published cohort of patients withNMOis more than 150 times higher than that in the general population. Conclusion: Dysregulation of B-cell autoimmunity in myasthenia, possibly exacerbated by loss of control over autoreactive cells as a result of thymectomy, may predispose patients to the development of NMO.
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U2 - 10.1001/archneur.63.6.851
DO - 10.1001/archneur.63.6.851
M3 - Article
C2 - 16769866
AN - SCOPUS:33745105474
SN - 0003-9942
VL - 63
SP - 851
EP - 856
JO - Archives of Neurology
JF - Archives of Neurology
IS - 6
ER -