title: Myasthenia gravis in an adolescent patient presenting to the pediatric emergency department.
abstract: Myasthenia gravis is a rare, chronic, autoimmune disorder characterized by postsynaptic dysfunction at the neuromuscular junction. The disease affects more females than males. We describe the case of a 17-year-old female adolescent with recurrent episodes of dysarthria and dysphagia and a history of aspiration pneumonia. A bedside edrophonium (Tensilon) test in our emergency department confirmed the diagnosis of myasthenia gravis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Loma Linda University Medical Center, Loma Linda, CA, USA.
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rook
authors.forename: Michelle L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Rivera
authors.forename: Gail M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Stewart
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002800:Cholinesterase Inhibitors; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004491:Edrophonium; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015278:Intensive Care Units, Pediatric; D018763:Muscle Fatigue / Q000187:drug effects; D053580:Muscle Strength / Q000187:drug effects; D009157:Myasthenia Gravis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D019095:Point-of-Care Systems; D012008:Recurrence
chemical_list: D002800:Cholinesterase Inhibitors; D004491:Edrophonium