Myasthenia Gravis

Context

Veteran actor Arun Bali died due to Myasthenia Gravis.

About Myasthenia gravis

• It is an autoimmune disease caused by a communication failure between nerves and muscles.
• This disease occurs in every 1 in 20,000 persons, causing muscle weakness.
• This muscle weakness is because of the inability of the neuromuscular junctions to transmit enough signals from nerve fibers to the muscle fibers. 
• In this condition, antibodies attack the acetylcholine receptor in the body and can be seen in the blood. 
• This causes a decrease in the number of Ach receptors causing muscle weakness.
• Drugs like neostigmine can help with the symptoms as it can accumulate acetylcholine in the synapses by inhibiting acetylcholinesterase.

Symptoms 

• Symptoms of myasthenia gravis include-
• Hoarse voice.
• Double vision.
• Drooping of eyelids.
• Difficulty in talking.
• Difficulty in swallowing or chewing.
• Problems in lifting objects and walking upstairs.
• Difficulty in breathing due to muscular weakness.

Treatment

• There is no cure for myasthenia gravis. 
• The goal of treatment is to manage symptoms and control the activity of your immune system through the below-mentioned ways-
• Medication.
• Plasma Exchange.
• Lifestyle Changes.
• Thymus Gland Removal.
• Intravenous Immune Globulin.
• Avoid stress and heat exposure.
• Rest to help minimize muscle weakness.