Quality of life and well-being of patients with myasthenia gravis.
The cardinal symptom of myasthenia gravis (MG) is weakness of voluntary muscles, a feature that may restrict full participation in life activities. In turn, such limitations may negatively affect quality of life (QOL) and well-being among individuals with the disease. In the present study, we administered a measure of QOL to 27 patients with generalized MG. Results revealed that functional status was negatively impacted in the domains of physical functioning, energy, and general health. However, a clinically meaningful difference was evident only on perceived ability to accomplish physical tasks. The results suggest that although MG requires accommodations in physical activities, general QOL and well-being does not differ markedly from the general population.
Department of Psychiatry, Division of Neuropsychology, Miriam Hospital, Brown University School of Medicine, 164 Summit Ave., Room 328, Providence, Rhode Island 02906, USA. RPaul@lifespan.org
R H
RH
Paul
J M
JM
Nash
R A
RA
Cohen
J M
JM
Gilchrist
J M
JM
Goldstein
D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D000368:Aged; D003863:Depression / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009157:Myasthenia Gravis / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011788:Quality of Life; D012044:Regression Analysis; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012720:Severity of Illness Index