Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42008094›Full record

ArticleDrugs - real world outcomes2026

Treatment Patterns in Patients with Late-Onset Myasthenia Gravis in Japan: An Insurance Claims Database Study.

Akiyuki Uzawa, Makoto Samukawa, Shingo Konno, Izumi Mishiro, Kentaro Taki, Hiroshi Todaka, Céline Quelen, Katarzyna Jabłońska, Renata Majewska, Yohei Ohashi

Abstract read
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Article in Drugs - real world outcomes, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Akiyuki UzawaDepartment of Neurology, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, Chiba, Japan.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9252-1863
Makoto SamukawaDepartment of Neurology, Kindai University Faculty of Medicine, Osaka, Japan.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3464-0754
Shingo KonnoDepartment of Neurology, Toho University Ohashi Medical Center, Tokyo, Japan.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8731-0663
Izumi MishiroReal World Evidence, UCB, Tokyo, Japan.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8705-4364
Kentaro TakiMedical Affairs Rare Disease, UCB, Tokyo, Japan.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0009-1291-0670
Hiroshi TodakaMedical Affairs Rare Disease, UCB, Tokyo, Japan.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0008-1224-6717
Céline QuelenPutnam, London, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0004-9376-5324
Katarzyna JabłońskaPutnam, Kraków, Poland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7421-443X
Renata MajewskaPutnam, Kraków, Poland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3376-7908
Yohei OhashiMedical Affairs Rare Disease, UCB, Tokyo, Japan. Yohei.Ohashi@ucb.com.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0003-8033-1298

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND

objectiveThis study evaluated treatment patterns and oral corticosteroid (OCS) use in Japanese patients with myasthenia gravis, comparing late-onset (mean age 79.8 years) and early/adult-onset (mean age 61.3 years) cohorts. It also explored treatment frequency rates.

methodsWe conducted a retrospective analysis of the DeSC Healthcare claims database (2014-21). Adults with myasthenia gravis starting immunosuppressant therapy and with ≥ 2 years of follow-up were included. Patients were stratified by age group (< 75 and ≥ 75 years) and by exposure to early fast-acting treatment (EFT). Outcomes included OCS dose trajectories, time to achieve a maintenance dose of ≤ 5 mg/day, and the frequency of myasthenia gravis cases treated with immunotherapy.

resultsEarly fast-acting treatment use was lower in the late-onset cohort (31/148 patients; 20.9%) than in the early-onset cohort (42/180; 28.0%). Initial and maximum OCS doses and time spent > 20 mg/day tended to be lower in late-onset patients. The OCS target was achieved more often and sooner in late-onset patients (median 5.1 vs 14.9 months), particularly in those without EFT. The frequency of treated myasthenia gravis cases was higher in late-onset patients (7.09 vs 3.97 per 100,000).

conclusionsLate-onset patients were less likely to receive EFT, received lower OCS doses yet reached the OCS target earlier, which may reflect physician caution with OCS exposure and good response to treatments. The findings highlight timely identification of the need for EFT, safer OCS-sparing strategies, and clearer clinical guidance in patients with late-onset myasthenia gravis.

Identifiers

PMID42008094
PMCPMC13287361

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.