Annals of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery : official journal of the Association of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeons of Asia
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Ann Thorac Cardiovasc Surg · Aug 1998
Comparative StudyInfluence of age on extended thymectomy as a treatment for myasthenia gravis.
This retrospective study examines the influence of age on extended thymectomy as a treatment for myasthenia gravis. From 1979 to 1997, 58 patients with myasthenia gravis underwent extended thymectomy at Miyazaki Medical College Hospital. We used the onset age of the disease to divide these patients into two groups: Group A included 14 patients >/= 50 years of age; Group B, 44 patients < 50. ⋯ Using Masaoka's criteria, we evaluated the clinical course of myasthenia gravis following extended thymectomy for each of the 58 patients. The remission rates in Groups A and B were 28.6% and 29.5%, respectively; the improvement rates, 71.4% and 79.5%, respectively with no significant differences among groups. These findings suggest that the clinical course of myasthenia gravis following extended thymectomy is not age-dependent and that extended thymectomy is a clinically safe and effective treatment option for myasthenia gravis patients >/= 50 years of age.