Disease in young women and older men: a medical condition that causes "muscle weakness"

People diagnosed with myasthenia gravis suffer greatly - they even get tired of chewing, most often their eyelids droop, and sometimes even the tone of speech changes due to muscle weakness.

The good news: there is a way to deal with it.

Here's everything you need to know about the disease

In collaboration with the Maggie Association

30/12/2021

Thursday, 30 December 2021, 12:20 Updated: Sunday, 02 January 2022, 09:44

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Myasthenia gravis, or in Hebrew tired muscle, is a deceptive disease. It causes weakness and severe muscle fatigue, but most of our lives are so busy - that there are quite a few people who attribute their hard feelings to overload or cumulative fatigue. But the truth is that it is a neuro-immunological disease that is very important to recognize, diagnose and treat quickly, as it can greatly disrupt life and cause great suffering to those who suffer from it and their family.

"The words myasthenia gravis mean acute weakness in Latin," explains Dr. Shachar Sheli, a specialist in neurology, neuromuscular diseases and peripheral neuroimmunology, in the neurology department at Sheba Hospital. the body due to the self-creation of antibodies "." these antibodies, said Dr. mine, "bind to a protein (receptor muscle cells) and this protein is responsible for indirectly neurotransmitter and is located on the side muscles, the connection point between the motor nerve muscle."

"The clinical symptoms in most patients begin with drooping of the eyelids, especially in the evening, which is accompanied by double vision. There is often weight loss, fatigue in chewing and coughing after drinking fluids. It seems to bend the head slightly, as the neck muscles get tired of holding the head upright, "explained Dr. Shelley," there is also weakness of the limb muscle, i.e. the muscles of the shoulders and thighs, especially after activity. "When you get up in the morning, there is freshness but towards the end of the day the weakness is noticeable."

These symptoms create a diagnostic difficulty. "Because we all actually get tired at the end of the day and we all live a very intense lifestyle, it is very difficult to suspect My Dr., "therefore it is very important to know the disease and pay attention to drooping of the eyelids, double vision, to sudden weight loss,Difficulty swallowing or drooping neck. "

Drooping of the eyelids, sudden weight loss, difficulty swallowing or drooping of the neck - all can be symptoms (Photo: ShutterStock)

How is it diagnosed?

"The disease is diagnosed by neurologists who specialize in muscular or neuromuscular diseases. The diagnosis is clinical, according to the patient's story, and is combined with blood tests for antibodies and a neurotransmitter test (EMG) by an experienced neurologist," explained Dr. Shelley. Through a variety of these tests - the clinical impression, the blood tests and the neurotransmitter test - this disease can be diagnosed. It is important that these patients also undergo computerized imaging of the thorax to look for enlargement of the thymus, "added Dr. Shelley.

However, Dr. Shelley noted that many patients with myasthenia gravis find it difficult to get a diagnosis of their disease. It's not uncommon for me to meet patients who have not been diagnosed for 3-4 years yet, and it's unfortunate that every year you are not treated the difficulty in returning to normal functioning increases. "

In Israel, there are at least 800 to 1,000 myasthenia gravis patients diagnosed.

"It's a disease of young women and older men - it can happen in women aged 18 to 30, and in men mostly over the age of 50," explained my doctor, but clarified that "there can always be cases in both sexes.

The prevalence of the disease is estimated at about 20 patients per 100,000 inhabitants. "

The disease has treatments that suppress the immune system (Photo: ShutterStock)

How is it treated?

The disease has treatments that mainly suppress the immune system - like steroids or other drugs that "press on the brakes of the immune system", Dr. Shelley explained that "because it is an autoimmune disease, these drugs in all sorts of indirect or direct ways contribute to a decrease in the amount of autoantibodies. These treatments have been proven to be effective and they allow for a return to a life routine alongside the disease.

However, in 10 to 15 percent of patients there is a disease that is "resistant to treatment", so they are the ones who need other solutions. "There are patients who do not respond to standard treatment and their condition continues to worsen," said Dr. Shelley. "In Israel, there are 12 patients who have reported a significant improvement in their condition with this new treatment."

Simply put, the new treatment works in a unique way that "prevents activation of the immune chain destruct mechanism. In fact, the drug connects to the conductor turned on and stops it. Like the dam in the middle of the river, you prevent the continuation downstream side," explained Dr. mine.

"Because it is a disease that causes muscle weakness, can affect the muscles of swallowing, respiratory muscles, the muscles of the limbs, and even cause respiratory failure life threatening, it is important to hear more about treatment options, and to recognize the drugs that can change the lives of patients with the disease. "

First most myasthenia grafts have a tendency to develop other autoimmune diseases, except that in patients with myasthenia gravis, up to 20% of patients, there is also benign cancer most often in the breast called thymoma, so those diagnosed with the disease should also do a chest CT to rule out a tumor.

Today, thymus removal is known to help control the disease.

Explained Dr. mine, "For years, they did not understand the link between the diseases, but recently it is believed that damage to thymus leads to the development of autoimmune disease, such as myasthenia gravis."

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funded by Israel as a contribution to the company Neopharm independent

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