A Neurologist's Perspective on Thymectomy for Myasthenia Gravis: Current Perspective and Future Trials

The first randomized blinded study of thymectomy in nonthymomatous myasthenia gravis was designed to answer 3 questions: does the combination of prednisone and removal of the thymus gland via extended transsternal thymectomy after 3 years compared with an identical dosing protocol of prednisone alone (1) lead to better disease status for generalized MG patients with antiacetylcholine receptor antibodies, (2) reduce their prednisone requirements, and/or (3) reduce the side-effect burden from medications used to treat the disease? The study demonstrated that thymectomy confers these benefits for patients and sets the stage for inquiries into the benefits of less-invasive approaches to thymic resection.