If someone is prone to blood clotting or has narrow blood vessels (for instance, due to heart disease), IVIg could contribute to a heart attack or stroke. IVIg is very protein-rich so it will make the blood a little thicker. The potentially worrisome complication is blood clotting. Sometimes it happens with every dose, sometimes just with one product. People can get hives or rash with the treatment, or a fever. A patient may need to drink Gatorade the day before and the day of, or receive IV fluids with the treatment. It helps to slow down the infusion, give a dose of steroids with the infusion, and for the patient to stay well hydrated before and during the treatment. Most do not have serious side effects – but less serious side effects are not uncommon.Ī common side effect is a headache – sometimes severe – that can start during or after the infusion. For the majority of people getting IVIg, the treatments are very safe. Many patients notice a “wearing off” before the next dose is due.
Patients tend to feel fatigued the day of and the day after an infusion, due to the treatment and to benedryl that is given to prevent allergic reaction. It may take several (2 to 5) days to see the “boost” from an infusion. With maintenance treatments, the technician will start speeding up subsequent infusions to see how the individual fares. A technician or nurse frequently tracks vital signs and watches for allergic reaction. IVIg is infused into a patient’s vein, and the infusion takes several hours. Recently, Gammagard, a commonly used product, has been on shortage and so other products have been used. There are many different brands of IVIg, and they are generally considered safe for most patients. When IVIg is used as a maintenance treatment, a smaller booster dose can be administered every 2 to 8 weeks. When administered over more days, fewer side effects are likely.
That dose can be divided over 1 to 5 days, depending on your health and situation. The first time you get an IVIG treatment, you receive a loading dose based on your weight. IVIg can be used as a rescue therapy or as a maintenance treatment.
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It’s as if we are distracting the immune system, so antibodies aren’t free to do the damage they were doing. The antibodies bind to white blood cells – the main cells in our immune system – and prevent them from participating in unwanted immune responses. Each batch contains antibodies obtained from thousands of blood donors. ▪ Side effects: increased risk of bleeding, Two new emerging treatments, rituximab and eculizumab, also will be addressed.īriefly, here’s how IVIg and plasma exchange compare: How IVIg Works What follows is a discussion of IVIg and plasma exchange, which can be used as rescue therapy (with the goal to improve crisis symptoms quickly) or maintenance therapy (to ease ongoing severe symptoms).
More aggressive – and different – treatment might be needed if the individual experiences: Prednisone has many side effects, so steroid-sparing agents – azathioprine, mycophenolate, etc., may be added to the mix. If a person’s symptoms are more severe, it might be necessary to suppress the immune system with prednisone.
It addresses the symptoms of MG, not the underlying problem. As the chart shows, the first medication often used is pyridostigmine (Mestinon®). There are a number of ways to treat MG, depending on the severity of the symptoms, and how aggressive the doctor and patient want to be. When the communication is interrupted, muscle weakness occurs because the affected muscles can’t contract as well as usual. With myasthenia gravis, your body produces antibodies that interfere with the communication between nerves and muscles. Click to see presentation Conquer MG gratefully acknowledges the support of our sponsor!Įmerging Treatments – Rituximab and Eculizumab Jacobson compared several important MG treatments: IVIg, plasma exchange, and emerging therapies rituximab and eculizumab (Soliris®). On April 28, 2019, neurologist Ryan Jacobson, MD, Rush University Medical Center, spoke to 55 myasthenia gravis patients and friends at Conquer MG’s Spring Patient Seminar at Elmhurst Memorial Hospital in Illinois. IVIg, Plasma Exchange, and Emerging MG Treatments
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