Wasp stings
 

2-3 months before developing the first symptoms of MG, my mom was stung by a wasp. After of a recent suggestion, we're wondering if the two might be related. There is research to back this up - I'll post some links below. Has anyone else seen this connection? Or, looking back now, was anyone stung by a wasp or other insect shortly before developing MG symptoms?

Ok, ***if you Google the titles you'll find them:
-Myasthenia gravis associated with wasp sting
-Myasthenia gravis and acute respiratory muscle paralysis following wasp sting

What I see on the net are anecdotal papers. Which means not many people have this reaction:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/946539

Vaccines, or other invasive things, set off autoimmune responses in some people. This paper implies that a subclinical myasthenia may have been present, and triggered by the venom.

What is unusual is that there has been a treatment suggested for Multiple Sclerosis, involving voluntary bee stings!
http://health.howstuffworks.com/medi...apy-and-ms.htm

So there might be some component in a wasp venom that is different to bee venom?

Hi, Aptamer. I'm sorry your Mom has MG. It's hard to say if it was a triggering event or simply exaggerated a disease she already had.

Here's some info for you. Other things that can make her MG worse are Atropine, which is often in eye drops given at an eye appt., neuromuscular blocking agents like Lidocaine given at the dentist and a lot of other drugs!

Wasp stings can have the affect of a cholinergic antagonist, like Atropine. Basically, you end up with less acetylcholine. It all depends upon what type of wasp or if it was a bee or other insect. And it will depend upon where a person is bitten (what part of the body) and how much venom goes into the body.

http://www.ionchannels.org/showabstr...p?pmid=2879703

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/169324-overview

http://rsmumed.com/forum/showthread....gic-antagonist)

http://books.google.com/books?id=Nk2...holine&f=false

http://books.google.com/books?id=CP2...holine&f=false

My lower leg basically went numb after a honey bee sting but I can't say for sure if that was simply an allergic response or a lessening of the acetylcholine. I've had MG since birth, so mine was definitely not caused by a wasp sting. Probably just bad genes.

If you ever have a question about anything again, you can Google that thing and "acetylcholine" like "wasp venom acetylcholine." It will yield a better result since most scientists talk in terms of acetylcholine and not MG. ;)

Annie

Had a wasp sting me twice on the hand this weekend and nothing unusual happened, much to my relief, as I have bad allergies and was worried with that, and MG combined, what might happen?
Seems I am in a remission period for now - will enjoy that as long as it lasts! :winky:

Hi Smokey56, sorry I missed your post, but good to hear about the remission! I'm wondering if the stings and remission are not coincidental. The point of asking that question was that, in cases where an insect allergy triggers MG, it might present a treatment. There's a treatment called venom immunotherapy designed to desensitize people to insect venom. People tend to get more sensitive to venom when stung occasionally, but less sensitive with more frequent exposure. Venom immunotherapy has been shown to change the way the immune system reacts to the venom. There is a chance this change could lessen MG symptoms. Of course, it could also make things much worse, which is why I've been looking for a MG researcher interested in reviewing it before we try anything. *admin edit*

Hi Aptamer,
Sorry it took so long to get back - between dealing with lifes needs and MG slowing one down time seems to run short!
I would let a wasp sting me repeatedly if it would cure this cursed disease for sure - lets keep our hopes up!