RT Book, Section A1 Reichman, Eric F. A2 Reichman, Eric F. SR Print(0) ID 1159805070 T1 Myasthenia Gravis Testing T2 Reichman's Emergency Medicine Procedures, 3e YR 2018 FD 2018 PB McGraw-Hill Education PP New York, NY SN 9781259861925 LK accessemergencymedicine.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1159805070 RD 2024/03/29 AB Myasthenia gravis is an autoimmune disorder that occurs when polyclonal antibodies bind to a significant number of postsynaptic acetylcholine receptors at the neuromuscular junction leading to inadequate neuromuscular transmission.1-4 It most commonly affects 10 to 30 year old females and 70 to 90 year old males. Multiple tests are available to diagnose myasthenia gravis.3,5-12 These include the use of muscle biopsies, curare, edrophonium chloride (Tensilon), electromyography, ice packs, neostigmine, nerve stimulation, and serologic testing. The edrophonium test is the most commonly used diagnostic test for myasthenia gravis.13-16 Many of these techniques are seldom used and not feasible to perform in the Emergency Department. For these reasons, only the edrophonium test and the ice pack test will be described in this chapter.