Table 1.
Demographic and clinical characteristics
| Prednisone Alone (N=33) |
Thymectomy plus Prednisone (N=35) |
|
|---|---|---|
| Gender | ||
| Women | 24 (73) | 27 (77) |
| Men | 9 (27) | 8 (23) |
| Median age in years at enrollment (range) | 35.4 (18.0–63.0) | 34.3 (18.0–63.0) |
| Median disease duration in years at enrollment (range) | 1.49 (0.24–3.97) | 1.22 (0.15–2.95) |
| Ethnicity | ||
| Asian | 3 (9) | 5 (14) |
| Black, African American | 3 (9) | 2 (6) |
| Hispanic | 15 (45) | 12 (34) |
| White, not Hispanic origin | 10 (30) | 13 (37) |
| Other (Mixed, Native American, or Alaskan) | 2 (6) | 3 (9) |
| MG Foundation of America Class at enrollment† | ||
| Class IIa | 12 (36) | 12 (34) |
| Class IIb | 8 (24) | 9 (26) |
| Class III | 12 (36) | 12 (34) |
| Class IV | 1 (3) | 2 (6) |
| Therapy at enrollment | ||
| Pyridostigmine | 32 (97) | 33 (94) |
| Corticosteroids | 24 (73) | 26 (74) |
| Prior intravenous immunoglobulin | 7 (21) | 2 (6) |
| Prior plasma exchange | 4 (12) | 5 (14) |
| Enrollment measures | ||
| Quantitative MG score | 13.00 ± 4.68 | 12.34 ± 5.05 |
| Alternate day prednisone dosage, mg | 48.5 ± 30.7 | 46.3 ± 32.7 |
| MG Activity of Daily Living score | 5.48 ± 2.99 | 5.37 ± 3.46 |
Data are n (%) or mean (SD)
†
Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America Class (II mild weakness, III moderate weakness, IV severe weakness, (“a” denotes predominantly limb and axial, “b” denotes predominantly bulbar).