Myasthenia gravis in Ceará, Brazil: clinical and epidemiological aspects.
A retrospective chart review was performed on patients diagnosed as having myasthenia gravis in Ceará State, Brazil and who were followed from October 1981 to June 2009. Clinical and epidemiologic aspects were evaluated. In this work, 122 patients were studied, of whom 85 (69.7%) were females and 37 (30.3%) were males. The disease duration ranged from five months to 50 years (8.9±8.1 years). Age at the first symptoms varied from 0 to 74 years (31.9±14.4 years). The first main symptoms and signs were ptosis, diplopia and limb weakness. Generalized myasthenia was the most common clinical presentation, but 5.1% (n=6) persisted as ocular myasthenia. Thymectomy was performed in 42.6% (n=52) of myasthenic patients. A thymoma was present in 10 patients. Serum acetylcholine receptor (AChR) antibodies were present in 80% (n=20) of specimens tested. The data presented are similar to those of studies performed in other countries.
São Marcos Hospital, Teresina, PI, Brazil. aaxaguiar@yahoo.com.br
Aline de Almeida Xavier
Ade A
Aguiar
André Ferrer
AF
Carvalho
Carlos Mauricio de Castro
CM
Costa
José Marcelino Aragão
JM
Fernandes
José Artur Costa
JA
D'Almeida
Luís Edmundo Teixeira de Arruda
LE
Furtado
Francisco Marcos Bezerra da
FM
Cunha
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009157:Myasthenia Gravis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000628:therapy; D015995:Prevalence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D055815:Young Adult