Myasthenia gravis

Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a rare, chronic, autoimmune, neuromuscular¹ condition where the body’s immune system mistakenly targets the connection between the nerves and the muscles².

In people living with MG, voluntary muscles don’t respond well to the signals sent by the brain.³ The main symptoms are extreme muscle weakness and fatigue⁴.

Additionally, the severity of muscle weakness worsens over time, an event called muscle ‘fatigability’⁴. On rare occasions the weakness can be life-threatening when people lose the ability to swallow or to breathe⁵. This is an MG crisis⁵.

The actual symptoms of MG vary greatly, so individuals experience it in a very personal way which can cause profound uncertainty^1,6.

Fast facts

• For 65% of people, the first signs of MG are problems with the eyes, such as double vision or drooping eyelids^7,8.
• 75% of people will develop more generalised weakness of muscles across the body⁷. Symptoms & disease severity tend to be worst and to fluctuate more within the first 3 years⁹.
• Between 15-20% of people with MG will experience a myasthenic crisis, that can lead to problems swallowing and respiratory failure¹⁰.

What treatments are there for MG?

There is currently no cure for MG¹³. There are a number of options available to help manage and control MG symptoms¹⁴. Whilst treatments are effective for most, they do not help all people with the condition¹⁵.