Age at sampling and sex distribution of AChRAb vs. MuSKAb myasthenia gravis in a large Greek population

Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a typical B-cell-mediated neuromuscular junction disease that can be classified into seropositive and seronegative subtypes. Association of patients’ age at sampling and sex with the two major seropositive MG subcategories, i.e., MGs linked to antibodies directed against th...

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Published in:Clinical neurology and neurosurgery 2021-09, Vol.208, p.106847-106847, Article 106847
Main Authors: Belimezi, Maria, Kalliaropoulos, Antonios, Jiménez, Juan, Garcia, Irene, Mentis, Alexios-Fotios A., Chrousos, George P.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acetylcholine receptor
Acetylcholine receptors
Adults
Age
Age composition
Age Distribution
Age Factors
Aged
Antibodies
Antigens
Autoantibodies
Disease
Epidemiology
Female
Females
Greece - epidemiology
Humans
Lymphocytes B
Male
Males
Middle Aged
MUSK protein
Myasthenia
Myasthenia gravis
Myasthenia Gravis - epidemiology
Myasthenia Gravis - immunology
Neuromuscular junction
Neuromuscular junctions
Patients
Pediatrics
Population
Population studies
Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases - immunology
Receptor protein–tyrosine kinases
Receptors, Cholinergic - immunology
Sampling
Sex
Sex Distribution
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Summary:Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a typical B-cell-mediated neuromuscular junction disease that can be classified into seropositive and seronegative subtypes. Association of patients’ age at sampling and sex with the two major seropositive MG subcategories, i.e., MGs linked to antibodies directed against the acetylcholine receptor (AChRAb) and against the muscle-specific kinase (MuSKAb), has not been compared in a large population. We performed a retrospective analysis of samples from patients with MG in Greece who underwent neurochemical diagnostic evaluation between January 2, 2013, and August 31, 2016. Overall, 1620 adult (623 male and 997 female patients; male-to-female ratio = 0.62) and 51 pediatric patients were found to be seropositive for MG. The distributions in both male and female patients were bimodal in the total and AChRAb MG cases but not in the total MuSKAb MG cases. Significant differences in the age at sampling distribution between the male and female adult patients were observed only in the AChRAb MG subtype. Significant differences between the AChRAb and MuSKAb MG categories were noted in the mean age values (60.10 and 51.49 years, respectively, for female and 65.69 and 56.19 years, respectively, for male adult patients). Our findings confirm an uneven profile of age at sampling and sex between the AChRAb and MuSKAb MG cases in a large population. Future mechanistic studies can elucidate the cause of these differences. Moreover, clinical studies can explore how such differences can affect MG treatment and prognosis. •The age/sex distribution of myasthenia gravis (MG) in a large cohort is described.•The study included >1650 patients seropositive for MG.•Age distribution in females is bimodal for AChRAb but not MuSKAb MG.•Significant differences in the age distribution of male vs. females in AChRAb MG.•The mean age differed significantly between AChRAb MG and MuSKAb MG.
ISSN:0303-8467
1872-6968
DOI:10.1016/j.clineuro.2021.106847