Immunotherapy of ocular myasthenia gravis reduces conversion to generalized myasthenia gravis.
BACKGROUND
Several retrospective studies have suggested that immunotherapy, including prednisolone, azathioprine and thymectomy, reduces progression of ocular myasthenia gravis to generalized myasthenia gravis. This study examines the effect of immunotherapy on generalization rates in ocular myasthenia patients who are acetylcholine receptor (AChR) antibody-positive.


METHODS
Retrospective record review of 34 patients from three university-based hospitals with neurology and neuro-ophthalmology services in Australia. In all patients, positive AChR antibodies were recorded, the initial symptoms were purely ocular, and all had at least 2 years of follow-up. The patients who developed generalized myasthenia gravis were compared with those who remained purely ocular.


RESULTS
There were 21 patients who developed generalized myasthenia gravis. Of these 21, only 2 (9.5%) had received prior immunotherapy. Among the 13 patients whose symptoms remained purely ocular, 10 (76.9%) had received prior immunotherapy.


CONCLUSIONS
In this study, most of the patients who progressed from ocular myasthenia to generalized myasthenia had not received prior immunotherapy. This study adds weight to the call for a prospective trial of early immunotherapy in patients with ocular myasthenia.
Mee
Jared
J
Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital, Melbourne, Australia.
Paine
Mark
M
Byrne
Edward
E
King
John
J
Reardon
Katrina
K
O'Day
Justin
J
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D018450:Disease Progression; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007167:Immunotherapy / Q000009:adverse effects; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009157:Myasthenia Gravis / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000628:therapy*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome