How do you treat flu when you have Myasthenia Gravis? We had flu shots but that is not always enough when you have no immune system to speak of. My husband has had bronchitis twice in the last 5 months and we had to go to Emergency the second time.
I know I should speak to the doctor but he actually is not good at discussion so we never manage more than one question per visit.
I usually take Echinacea for myself but as an immune booster this is surely not good for my husband who is the patient here. Likewise I cannot get the doctor to commit on vitamins. Any suggestions?

To get stronger Immune System I can't imagine living without good dosing of Vit C a couple times daily and I've taken Grape Seed Extract for going on 25 yrs for immune system. Never sick here. Now for your MG, I don't know. I see only integrative MD's for my health and they are spot on. Allopathic docs leave a huge void in my life.

You might even google MG and Grape Seed Extract and see what comes up.

Here is one of MG and Grape Seed Ex

https://www.drladdvip.com/myasthenia-gravis/

Having MG does not mean that somebody has "no immune system to speak of".

MG is an autoimmune disease; immune system involvement in it is confined to various proteins found at neuromuscular junctions.

Generally vaccination against flu virus is recommended for people in late middle age or older.

This discussion of Echinacea may help.

Echinacea: Uses, Side Effects, Interactions, Dosage, and Warning

If you decide to take vitamins or supplements, be sure to check for interactions with any medications you take..

Drug Interactions Checker - For Drugs, Food & Alcohol

Drug Interactions Checker - Check Your Brand and Generic Drugs - RxList

Sorry, I didn't explain properly. It;s not the MG that diminishes the immune system it's the medicine they give you for it which effectively suppresses immune response, hence when I get a little sniffle for 2 days my husband will have a severe respiratory issue.

Rhod, you haven’t said what his dosage is. At one point, long ago, I was on 100mg of prednisone and 200mg of Imuran, another immunosuppressant. I made sure I got a flu shot every year. I washed my hands frequently with antibiotic soap. I took a multivitamin daily, Centrum for Men. I did not get sick very often and I did NOT isolate myself from everyone. The immune system is suppressed, but not eliminated. Maybe I was lucky, who knows? I did have side effects from the prednisone, but I didn’t get sick much. Jim

wow, that is a really high dose of Prednisone. My husband takes 5mg four times a day. he used to be on 40 a day at one time. The trouble is the side effects, not only is he irritable, he doesn't sleep well at night and he has put on a lot of weight. He has what i have been told is called "moon face". He is severely depressed and just wants to sleep most of the day. He has had good spells but the last month or so has been hell. We think the Prednisone has made things worse rather than better.
We are both very frustrated

Fortunately I wasn’t on 100mg of prednisone for long, but weening off takes awhile. Your husband has some of the classic side effects. He can try some over-the-counter sleep aids on occasion. I’ve tried Lunesta and Ambian, but start with the over-the-counter first. Watch what he eats, I gained weight too, about 30 lbs. My doctor put me on “Akins” and it helped. I took an antidepressant for awhile (yes, my doctor was an Internist). That was hard to come off of. I didn’t think I was that irritable, but my family told me otherwise. The ‘Moon face’ should go away, at least mine did. Prednisone take some time to ‘kick in’.

Hey, Rhod.

Sorry your husband is still sick. Better now?

Did they put your husband on an antibiotic? Biaxin has been shown to be very effective against any lung/sinus infection, and has been shown to work in ARDS (acute respiratory distress syndrome), along with IVIG and Plaquenil.

***Always check with a doctor and/or a pharmacist before starting anything new, even OTCs. There could be interactions between those and prescription drugs.

Has your husband had an overnight oximetry? MG can cause hypoxia, making breathing even worse. Our breathing becomes worse at night due to muscles being even weaker.

I hope he is better. Take care of yourselves.

Annie


Vitamin D

https://www.bmj.com/content/bmj/356/bmj.i6583.full.pdf

Quercetin

Quercetin, Inflammation and Immunity

Echinacea and Curcumin

Immunomodulators Inspired by Nature: A Review on Curcumin and Echinacea. - PubMed - NCBI