title: Severe asthma associated with myasthenia gravis.
abstract: Severe asthma constitutes a subgroup of approximately 10% of all asthma cases. Approximately one-half of these individuals have a refractory form of the disease in which atopy and T-helper cell 2-skewed immunological response may not be as closely linked to the disease as in other phenotypes of asthma. This suggests that not all asthma is explained by a T-helper cell 2-skewed immunological response, and that other immunological mechanisms may be important in this category of nonatopic asthma. The authors present a case involving a 55-year-old Caucasian man with nonatopic, adult-onset asthma, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug sensitivity and idiopathic urticaria. This individual presented two years following his initial asthma diagnosis with diplopia and mild ptosis, and was subsequently diagnosed with seropositive myasthenia gravis.
authors.forename: Natasha
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Satkunam
authors.forename: Zaeem A
authors.initials: ZA
authors.lastname: Siddiqi
authors.forename: Dilini
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Vethanayagam
mesh_terms: D001249:Asthma / Q000150:complications / Q000276:immunology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009157:Myasthenia Gravis / Q000150:complications / Q000276:immunology*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013147:Spirometry
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