The ageing and myasthenic thymus: a morphometric study validating a standard procedure in the histological workup of thymic specimens

J Neuroimmunol. 2008 Sep 15:201-202:64-73. doi: 10.1016/j.jneuroim.2008.06.017. Epub 2008 Jul 25.

Abstract

The thymus is believed to play an important role in the pathogenesis of myasthenia gravis (MG). The 80% of MG patients with anti-acetylcholine receptor autoantibodies fall into three clinical subgroups: 1) thymoma; 2) early-onset MG (<age of 40; EOMG) and 3) late-onset (LOMG; onset after 40). Thymectomy is widely used in EOMG, but its benefits have not been established in randomized controlled trials. A multicenter international trial (MGTX) currently seeks to determine whether thymectomy reduces corticosteroid requirements, and to look for correlations with thymic histology. We here describe the validated, standardized histological workup and reporting system used in this trial.

Publication types

  • Multicenter Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Age Factors
  • Aging*
  • Child
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Immunohistochemistry / methods
  • Immunohistochemistry / standards
  • Male
  • Myasthenia Gravis / immunology
  • Myasthenia Gravis / pathology*
  • Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Sex Factors
  • Thymectomy* / methods
  • Thymectomy* / standards
  • Thymoma / pathology
  • Thymus Extracts / immunology
  • Thymus Extracts / metabolism*
  • Thymus Gland / pathology*
  • Thymus Neoplasms / pathology

Substances

  • Thymus Extracts