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Quality of life in patients with MuSK positive myasthenia gravis

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Abstract

It is believed that myasthenia gravis (MG) with antibodies to muscle-specific tyrosine kinase (MuSK) is the most severe form of the disease, especially in the first years of the disease. The aim of our study was to investigate quality of life (QoL) in a population of patients with MuSK MG compared to those with MG who have antibodies to acetylcholine receptor (AChR) in their sera. The study group consisted of 35 MuSK MG patients (28 females and 7 males), while the control group included 38 AChR MG patients matched for gender, age, and duration of the disease. SF-36 questionnaire was used to evaluate the health-related QoL. Following scales were also used: Hamilton’s scales for depression and anxiety, the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, and the Acceptance of Illness Scale. Physical domain scores of QoL were similarly affected in both MuSK and AChR groups, while mental domain and total SF-36 scores were even better in MuSK MG patients. Social support was better in the MuSK group (77.3 ± 9.3 vs. 70.6 ± 14.1, p < 0.05). SF-36 total score correlated with depression (rho = 0.54, p < 0.01), anxiety (rho = 0.49, p < 0.01), and MSPSS (rho = − 0.35, p < 0.05), and depression was an independent predictor of worse QoL. Besides therapy of weakness, psychiatric treatment and different forms of psychosocial condition should be part of regular therapeutic protocols for MG. Adequate team work of health professionals and family can provide a healthy mental environment in which a MuSK MG patient would feel more comfortable in spite of the disease.

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Funding

This study was supported by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development of Serbia (Grant #175083).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia

    Milica Stankovic & Olivera Stojiljkovic Tamas

  2. School of Medicine, Neurology Clinic, Clinical Centre of Serbia, University of Belgrade, Dr Subotica Starijeg 6, 11 000, Belgrade, Serbia

    Stojan Peric, Ana Nikolic, Dragana Lavrnic & Ivana Basta

  3. School of Medicine, University of Nis, Nis, Serbia

    Tamara Stankovic

Authors
  1. Milica Stankovic
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  2. Stojan Peric
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  3. Olivera Stojiljkovic Tamas
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  4. Tamara Stankovic
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  5. Ana Nikolic
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  6. Dragana Lavrnic
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  7. Ivana Basta
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Correspondence to Ivana Basta.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Stankovic, M., Peric, S., Stojiljkovic Tamas, O. et al. Quality of life in patients with MuSK positive myasthenia gravis. Acta Neurol Belg 118, 423–427 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13760-018-0915-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13760-018-0915-y

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