Effect of the Administration of Cautionary Drugs on the Risk of Worsening Myasthenia Gravis: A Retrospective Matched Case-Control Study

Abstract

Purpose: Although some medications trigger the worsening of myasthenia gravis (MG), their clinical influence on patients with MG has not been significantly evaluated. We aimed to investigate whether the risk of clinical worsening of MG increases after administering cautionary drugs in patients with MG.

Materials and methods: This retrospective case-control study was based on the medical records of patients diagnosed with MG between 2007 and 2020. We analyzed the risk of MG worsening in patients exposed to cautionary drugs during the risk period, defined as 6 months from the first exposure to cautionary drugs. The risk of MG worsening in the exposed patients was compared to that in the non-exposed patients, who were individually matched in a 1:1 ratio with exposed cases for sex, age, thymoma, and autoantibodies.

Results: Of the 2002 patients diagnosed with MG, 552 (27.6%) were exposed to cautionary drugs. Neuromuscular blocking agents (320 patients) and beta blockers (66123 person-days) were the most frequently prescribed medications. After exact matching, 220 exposed and 220 non-exposed patients were enrolled. The incidence rate of clinical worsening during the risk period was significantly higher in the exposed patients than in the non-exposed patients (odds ratio=4.09; 95% confidence interval, 1.88-8.90; p<0.001). Clinical worsening was observed in 31 (14.1%) of the exposed patients and in 8 (3.6%) of the non-exposed patients.

Conclusion: The administration of cautionary drugs increased the risk of clinical worsening in patients with MG. Clinicians should be aware of this risk when cautionary drugs need to be administered.