myasthenia gravis

noun

myasthenia gra·​vis -ˈgra-vəs  -ˈgrä- 

: a disease that is characterized by progressive weakness and exhaustibility of voluntary muscles without atrophy and is caused by an autoimmune attack on muscle cell receptors which normally bind to acetylcholine released at nerve endings

Note: Symptoms of myasthenia gravis may include double vision, drooping of the eyelids, difficult swallowing, impaired speech, and weakness in the arms, legs, and neck.

… in myasthenia gravis, antibodies destroy the muscle's receptor proteins that serve as docks for this signal, a chemical called acetylcholine.

—Science News

Examples of myasthenia gravis in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In the comic books, Web is a blind, elderly woman who suffers from myasthenia gravis, an autoimmune disorder that forces her to use a life support system. —Amethyst Tate, Peoplemag, 8 Aug. 2022

His longtime partner, Keely Stahl, said the cause was myasthenia gravis, an autoimmune neuromuscular disease that weakens the skeletal muscles. —Alex Williams, BostonGlobe.com, 28 Jan. 2023

Linell Chenault Smith, whose life was defined by literature, art, music and her love for her thoroughbred horses who also edited and illustrated books by and about her late poet father Ogden Nash, died of myasthenia gravis and complications from pneumonia July 28 at her Sparks farm. —Baltimore Sun, 20 Aug. 2022

June is awareness month for Alzheimer’s, cataracts, migraines and headaches, scoliosis, myasthenia gravis (an autoimmune disorder affecting nerves and muscles), aphasia (loss of ability to speak or understand speech), post-traumatic stress disorder and men’s health. —Scott Lafee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 June 2022

As previously reported, Dakota Johnson has been cast as the title character, a blind, paralyzed elderly woman who has myasthenia gravis, a chronic autoimmune disorder requiring her to connect to a life support system resembling a spiderweb. —Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 16 Mar. 2022

Audrey can also be seen as Brock’s rigorous and corrective response to his own traumas: alcoholism, chronic stress, six painful eye surgeries and his struggles with myasthenia gravis, a rare autoimmune disease that threatened his vision and muscle control. —Howie Kahn, WSJ, 30 Sep. 2021

In the Marvel comics, Madame Web is a paralyzed, elderly woman with myasthenia gravis, a chronic autoimmune disorder requiring her to connect to a life support system resembling a spider web. —Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 24 May 2022

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, literally, grave myasthenia

First Known Use

1900, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

myasthenia gravis

noun

myasthenia gra·​vis -ˈgrav-əs  -ˈgräv- 

: a disease characterized by progressive weakness and exhaustibility of voluntary muscles without atrophy or sensory disturbance and caused by an autoimmune attack on acetylcholine receptors at neuromuscular junctions