J Korean Med Sci.  2022 Mar;37(10):e50. 10.3346/jkms.2022.37.e50.

Early-Onset Myasthenia Gravis Following COVID-19 Vaccination

• Lee MA
• Lee C
• Park JH
• Lee JH

• KMID: 2526980
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2022.37.e50

Abstract

As coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has spread worldwide, the rate of COVID-19 vaccination uptake is encouraging. Neurological complications associated with COVID-19 vaccines such as stroke, Guillain-Barré syndrome, and Bell’s palsy have been reported. Recently, late-onset myasthenia gravis (MG) following COVID-19 vaccination has been reported. To date, however, there has been no evidence of increased risk of early-onset MG following COVID-19. Here, we report a case of a patient with new-onset MG that arose after receiving a COVID-19 vaccine. A 33-year-old woman suddenly experienced generalized weakness and diplopia on the evening she had received the second dose of the PfizerBioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. The temporal relationship suggests that this new-onset MG is related to the vaccination. It also implies that COVID-19 vaccination could trigger early-onset MG symptoms in patients at risk of MG.

Keyword

Myasthenia Gravis; COVID-19 Vaccines; Thymus Hyperplasia

Figure

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  Fig. 1 (A) Repetitive nerve stimulation test revealed a decremental response in the right orbicularis oculi. (B) Chest computed tomography showed mild thymic hyperplasia (red arrow) in the anterior mediastinum.

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