title: Beneficial effect of tacrolimus on myasthenia gravis with thymoma.
abstract: We examined the effect of tacrolimus on myasthenia gravis (MG). Five patients with thymoma and 5 patients without thymoma underwent prior thymectomy but showed persistent myasthenic symptoms. Oral administration with tacrolimus significantly improved MG scores 1, 3, and 6 months following the beginning of treatment in all patients (P < 0.05), and the improvement was significantly higher in the thymoma group compared with the nonthymoma group (P < 0.05). However, there was no significant change in antiacetylcholine receptor titers in either group. This indicates a particular application of immunosuppressive therapy for thymomatous MG following thymectomy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine and Bioregulatory Sciences, University of Tokushima Graduate School of Medicine, Tokushima, Japan. tmitsui@clin.med.tokushima-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Takao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mitsui
authors.forename: Makoto
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kunishige
authors.forename: Michiko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ichimiya
authors.forename: Kana
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Shichijo
authors.forename: Itsuro
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Endo
authors.forename: Toshio
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Matsumoto
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D015551:Autoimmunity / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009157:Myasthenia Gravis / Q000150:complications* / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*; D011978:Receptors, Nicotinic / Q000276:immunology; D016559:Tacrolimus / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D013945:Thymoma / Q000150:complications* / Q000276:immunology / Q000532:radiotherapy; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D011978:Receptors, Nicotinic; D016559:Tacrolimus