title: Analysis of outcomes following surgical treatment of thymolipomatous myasthenia gravis: comparison with thymomatous and non-thymomatous myasthenia gravis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Although significant improvement in myasthenic symptoms has been reported following the removal of thymolipomas, information on surgical outcomes among patients with thymolipomatous myasthenia gravis (MG) is limited.
  
  
  METHODS
  This was a retrospective review of patients who underwent extended thymectomy for treatment of MG.
  
  
  RESULTS
  From 1995 to 2010, 267 patients with MG underwent extended thymectomy, including 104 with thymomatous MG, 151 with non-thymomatous MG and 12 (4.4%) with thymolipoma. The mean duration of myasthenic symptoms before surgery was greatest in the thymolipomatous group (P < 0.001). The lowest mean age (36.1 years old, P < 0.001) and the lowest preoperative serum anti-acetylcholine receptor antibody titre (P = 0.015) occurred in the non-thymomatous group. More thymic and adipose tissue was removed from the thymolipomatous group compared with the non-thymomatous group (P < 0.001). Regarding surgical outcomes, the rate of stable remission was higher in the non-thymomatous (42.3%) and thymolipomatous (41.7%) groups compared with the thymomatous group (28.8%, P = 0.029). No instances of postoperative exacerbation of MG or tumour recurrence were noted during the postoperative follow-up of patients treated for thymolipoma.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results suggest that patients with myasthenia thymolipomatous have surgical outcomes similar to those of patients with non-thymomatous MG and have a mean age at the time of surgery similar to that of patients with thymomatous MG.
authors.affiliation: Division of Thoracic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Chien-Sheng
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Wing-Yin
authors.initials: WY
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Pei-Chen
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Ko-Pei
authors.initials: KP
authors.lastname: Kao
authors.forename: Teh-Ying
authors.initials: TY
authors.lastname: Chou
authors.forename: Mei-Han
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Han-Shui
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Hsu
authors.forename: Yu-Chung
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Wen-Hu
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Hsu
authors.forename: Biing-Shiun
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Huang
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001706:Biopsy; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008067:Lipoma / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009157:Myasthenia Gravis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery*; D012074:Remission Induction; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013934:Thymectomy; D013945:Thymoma / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D013953:Thymus Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D013997:Time Factors; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Anterior mediastinal tumour; Myasthenia gravis; Thymectomy; Thymolipoma