% IMPORTANT: The following is UTF-8 encoded. This means that in the presence
% of non-ASCII characters, it will not work with BibTeX 0.99 or older.
% Instead, you should use an up-to-date BibTeX implementation like “bibtex8” or
% “biber”.
@ARTICLE{Beckmann:281352,
author = {Beckmann, Janna and Petzold, Moritz and Betzler, Felix and
Ströhle, Andreas and Bendau, Antonia and Dusemund, Carla
and Petzold, Gabor C and Meisel, Andreas and Hoffmann,
Sarah},
title = {{A}nxiety in {M}yasthenia {G}ravis {P}atients {T}hroughout
the {COVID}-19 {P}andemic-{P}revalence, {R}isk {F}actors,
and {A}ssociation {W}ith {V}accination {S}tatus.},
journal = {Brain and behavior},
volume = {15},
number = {9},
issn = {2162-3279},
address = {Malden, Mass.},
publisher = {Wiley},
reportid = {DZNE-2025-01099},
pages = {e70878},
year = {2025},
abstract = {A high prevalence of COVID-19-related anxiety was observed
among the general population during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Patients with myasthenia gravis (MG) might be at higher risk
for COVID-19-related anxiety due to immunosuppressive
therapy in the majority of cases and risk of myasthenic
exacerbation in case of an infection. This prospective
longitudinal study assessed COVID-19-related anxiety in MG
patients over 2 years of the pandemic and its association
with MG-specific factors (e.g., disease severity,
immunosuppressive medication) and with vaccination status.A
three-wave longitudinal online survey was conducted from May
2020 to February 2022, including a total of 648 adult MG
patients. Descriptive, univariate, and multivariate analyses
were performed to assess COVID-19-related and MG-related
anxiety, associated MG-specific factors, and association
with vaccination status.COVID-19-related anxiety was
frequent, with the most pronounced fear being risk for one's
own health (overall $83.9\%).$ Anxiety was influenced by MG
diagnosis (overall $75.1\%),$ especially by fear of
exacerbation of myasthenic symptoms and greater risk of
infection due to immunosuppressive therapy. Female sex and
treatment with immunosuppressive medication, including
rituximab, were associated with an increased concern for
one's own health. Fear for one's own health was the only
factor associated with vaccination status.COVID-19-related
anxiety was prevalent among MG patients. An ongoing
psychological impact is likely and highlights the need for
anxiety screening in clinical practice. Our findings
emphasize the importance of addressing mental health
challenges during future pandemics.},
keywords = {Humans / Myasthenia Gravis: psychology / Myasthenia Gravis:
epidemiology / Myasthenia Gravis: drug therapy / Myasthenia
Gravis: complications / COVID-19: psychology / COVID-19:
epidemiology / Female / Male / Anxiety: epidemiology /
Anxiety: etiology / Anxiety: psychology / Middle Aged / Risk
Factors / Prevalence / Adult / Aged / Longitudinal Studies /
Prospective Studies / Vaccination: psychology / Vaccination:
statistics $\&$ numerical data / Immunosuppressive Agents:
therapeutic use / Immunosuppressive Agents: adverse effects
/ SARS-CoV-2 / autoimmune disease (Other) / corona (Other) /
fear (Other) / immunosuppressive treatment (Other) /
Immunosuppressive Agents (NLM Chemicals)},
cin = {AG Petzold},
ddc = {610},
cid = {I:(DE-2719)1013020},
pnm = {353 - Clinical and Health Care Research (POF4-353)},
pid = {G:(DE-HGF)POF4-353},
typ = {PUB:(DE-HGF)16},
pubmed = {pmid:40958409},
pmc = {pmc:PMC12441002},
doi = {10.1002/brb3.70878},
url = {https://pub.dzne.de/record/281352},
}