Myasthenia Gravis Support Group

Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a neuromuscular disease leading to fluctuating muscle weakness and fatiguability. The hallmark of myasthenia gravis is muscle weakness that increases during periods of activity and improves after periods of rest. Although myasthenia gravis may affect any voluntary muscle, muscles that control eye and eyelid movement, facial expression, and...

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Is ivig for life

pkapadia
pkapadia
i go for ivig every 4 week. is ivig for life or some point it will stop?
Steve0716
Steve0716
Someone else might be able to give you are more scientific answer, but I don't think they can actually say if it is or not. It depends on its effectiveness and the fact that your body can get used to it so that it stops working. As with all treatments, your body has a tendency to adjust on its own so that the treatments need to be tweaked or even stopped due to a loss of effectiveness or the fact that they achieved the specified goal. Many have gone into remission with IVIG and have been able to discontinue it due to that.

I hope that you do well and can quit because it worked for you.
God bless.
Rhanson
Rhanson
IVIG is very expensive -- something like $15,000 each treatment. Therefore, most insurance companies look at it as a temporary emergency treatment while some other longer term medication begins to work. That is why most of us are on cellcept, imuran, prednisone, etc.

The usual routine: IVIG initially to get MG under control or get us out of a crisis. At the same time we start an immune suppressant type med. If the medication route doesn't work, some folks do end up taking IVIG for longer periods of time.

One study discusses this and mentions taking it from 5-7 years
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24267740

Good Luck!
TBreak
TBreak
I used to do every 4 weeks, but I'm up to every 10 now. I just can't seem to get past 10. My Dr. said they want to space it out more over time if I can handle it, and maybe be off of it altogether. I met a girl who gets it every 8 months. She 's been getting it since she was 13, she's in her late 30's now. I guess it all depends on the individual.