[Effect of thymectomy in myasthenia gravis]

In order to examine the long-term effects of sternal splitting extended thymectomy in myasthenia gravis 42 patients were evaluated on an annual basis, beginning 12 months after surgery. The effects of surgery on the patients' myasthenic symptoms were as follows: 21.4% of the patients achieved complete remission, 61.9% showed improvement; in total 83.3% had palliation. There were no significant correlation among age, sex, Osserman type, pre-operative treatment and histological findings. Patients with long duration of the disease showed a statistically lower percentage of remission; the patients with complication after operation showed a lower percentage of palliation. The annual transition of the remission rate and the palliation rate were as follows: 11.8% of patients were in remission at 12 months after surgery; 16.1% at 24 months; and 17.4% at 36 months. Moreover 91.2% of the patients were palliated at 12 months after surgery; 90.3% at 24 months; 87.0% at 36 months; and 83.3% at 48 months. There was no significant difference in annual transition rates by age, Osserman type, pre-operative treatment and histology by scattering matric analysis. There was significant differences in annual transition rates according to dyspnea, duration of the disease, sex and post-operative complication.