CLINICO-LABORATORY FINDINGS OF PATIENTS WITH MYASTHENIA GRAVIS IN KENYA: A 10 YEAR RETROSPECTIVE STUDY

Background Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an important condition of the neuromuscular junction. In our local population, there is paucity of data on the epidemiological and clinico-laboratory characteristics of the disease. The aim of this study was to evaluate the demographic, clinical and laboratory features of patients with myasthenia gravis presenting at the Kenyatta National Hospital. Methods This was a descriptive cross-sectional study using patient records for the years 2008-2017. Data on the socio-demographic, clinico-laboratory characteristics, subtype of MG at presentation and outcome was abstracted from files, entered into SPSS 21.0 and analyzed. Descriptive statistics were used for sociodemographic characteristics and other descriptive variables. Results A total of 48 patients were treated for MG over the 10-year period. The mean age was 28.2 years. There was a female preponderance of 58.3%. The mean duration of symptoms before diagnosis (diagnostic delay) was 11.2 months (range 2-48 weeks), and the commonest initialsign noticed by the patient was ocular (60.4%), followed by weakness of extremities (22.9%). Majority had Osserman-Genkin stage IIa (35.4%) and III (35.4%). The commonest cause of death was MG-related respiratory failure and aspiration pneumonia. Conclusion This is the first study to document epidemiology and clinical features of myasthenia gravis in Kenya. MG occurs in Kenya, is more common in females, and occurs mostly in the third decade of life (20-30). We hope that this study will help raise the awareness of this rare disorder, and increase research into the diagnosis and effective treatment of myasthenia gravis.