Does change in acetylcholine receptor antibody level correlate with clinical change in myasthenia gravis?
Journal Article (Clinical Trial;Journal Article)
INTRODUCTION: The objective of this study is to determine if change in acetylcholine receptor antibody (AChR-ab) levels reflects change in clinical severity in patients with myasthenia gravis (MG). METHODS: We reviewed results from a prospective trial in MG and from all 85 patients in an MG Clinic who had AChR-ab determinations performed at least twice by the same commercial laboratory. RESULTS: Change in AChR-ab levels correlated only weakly with change in clinical severity. AChR-ab levels fell in 92% of patients who improved and in 63% who did not. A fall in AChR-ab level had a positive predictive value for clinical improvement of 83% and a negative predictive value of only 59%. CONCLUSIONS: AChR-ab levels fell in almost all patients who improved, but also in most patients who did not. Thus, we do not recommend commercially available AChR-ab levels as a biomarker of improvement in MG. However, antibody levels might be useful as a marker for inadequate immunotherapy.
Full Text
Duke Authors
Cited Authors
- Sanders, DB; Burns, TM; Cutter, GR; Massey, JM; Juel, VC; Hobson-Webb, L; Muscle Study Group,
Published Date
- April 2014
Published In
Volume / Issue
- 49 / 4
Start / End Page
- 483 - 486
PubMed ID
- 23835683
Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)
- 1097-4598
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- 10.1002/mus.23944
Language
- eng
Conference Location
- United States