An Overview of Thymectomy Approaches among Myasthenia Graves Patients: Review Article

Desoky, Mahmoud Ahmed Abdelsamed; Emam, Elrady Kamal; Ragab, Ehab Sobhy; Shafeek, Ahmed Mahmoud Ahmed

doi:10.21608/ejhm.2023.296191

An Overview of Thymectomy Approaches among Myasthenia Graves Patients: Review Article

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

10.21608/ejhm.2023.296191

Abstract

Background: Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a syndrome characterized by fatigue- and activity-induced improvements in skeletal muscular weakening. There is a wide range of possible involvement, including but not limited to the muscles of the eyes, face, oropharynx, trunk, and limbs. Once the patient's level of weakness has been managed to the point that surgery is possible, thymectomy is recommended. Preoperatively, patients are typically treated with mild doses of intravenous immunoglobulins as well as glucocorticoids.
Objective: Review of the literature on thymectomy approaches among myasthenia graves’ patients.
Methods: We scoured medical journals and databases including PubMed, Google Scholar, and Science Direct for information on thymectomy and myasthenia graves. Between September 2006 and August 2022, however, only the latest or most comprehensive study was considered. The authors also assessed the usefulness of references drawn from similar books. Documents written in languages other than English have been overlooked because of lack of funding to translate them. Unpublished articles, oral talks, conference abstracts, and dissertations were all generally agreed upon not to constitute valid scientific investigation.
Conclusion: It has been argued that a maximum thymectomy, in which both the transsternal and transcervical techniques are used on the same MG patient, yields superior results. After extensive transsternal thymectomy or video-assisted thoracoscopic thymectomy, half of patients with non-thymomatous MG had complete stable remissions at 6 years of follow-up.

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