Summary of meta-analysis of risk factors of myasthenia gravis recurrence post-thymectomy.
| Risk Factor | Number of primary studies | Effect size | Random-effects summary effect size (95% CI) | P-value (random) | I2 | Egger regression test (P–value) | Begg and Mazumdar correlation test (P–value) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Older age (>35 - 60) years | 8 | OR | 3.45 (2.36 – 5.04) | <0.001 | 0 | 0.017 | 0.006 |
| Male sex | 5 | OR | 2.84 (1.51 – 5.35) | 0.001 | 34.8 | <0.001 | 0.027 |
| Higher stage of the MG (>ii) | 10 | OR | 4.80 (3.1 – 7.67) | <0.001 | 39.6 | 0.033 | 0.049 |
| Thymomatous MG | 9 | OR | 2.05 (1.56 – 2.68) | <0.001 | 24.3 | 0.118 | 0.25 |
| Longer duration of MG before surgery | 6 | OR | 2.27 (1.04 – 4.94) | 0.039 | 79.2 | 0.433 | 0.260 |
| Ectopic Thymic tissue | 3 | OR | 6.04 (3.08 – 11.82) | <0.001 | 0 | 0.687 | 0.601 |
| Thymic hyperplasia | 4 | OR | 1.12 (0.17 - 757) | 0.907 | 86.3 | 0.359 | 0.308 |
| Thymic atrophy | 2 | OR | 2.54 (1.41 – 4.58) | 0.002 | |||
| Higher Pyridostigmine dosage (>240 mg) | 2 | OR | 2.80 (1.48 – 5.28) | 0.002 | |||
| Use of steroid before thymectomy | 2 | OR | 2.58 (1.47 – 4.54) | 0.001 |
MG - myasthenia gravis