Genetic study of sample of 70 patients with myasthenia gravis.

The role of genetic factors in the causation of myasthenia gravis is not clear. Oppenheim, as early as 1900, reported familial instances of myasthenia and suggested that genetic factors were involved. On the other hand, Ford in 1937 stated, 'there is never any familial or hereditary tendency in myasthenia gravis'. However, since then, there have been several reports of familial instances of myasthenia gravis (Rothbart, 1937; Osserman, 1958; Goulon et al., 1960; Simpson, 1964; Greenberg, 1964), which have been the subject of several reviews (Celesia, 1965; Kurland and Alter, 1960). Storm-Mathison in 1961 (quoted by Herrmann, 1966) found two secondary cases of myasthenia gravis among the relatives of 88 patients, and Herrmann (1966) found 6 secondary cases among the relatives of 194 patients, but in neither of these