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The Tensilon test is used to diagnose myasthenia gravis, a neuromuscular disease that causes weak voluntary muscles. The test involves injecting the patient with Tensilon and observing the effect on muscle strength. Abnormal findings can indicate other conditions. Symptoms of myasthenia gravis include difficulty breathing, chewing, and mobility issues.
The tensilon test is a medical procedure performed to diagnose a neuromuscular disease called myasthenia gravis. During the Tensilon test, the patient receives an injection of Tensilon, a drug also known as edrophonium, into the muscle or vein. Other times, a placebo takes the drug’s place. In some cases, the patient may be given another drug, atropine, before the Tensilon injection. The purpose of the Tensilon test is not only to diagnose myasthenia gravis but also to ensure the diagnosis by differentiating between the disorder and other similar conditions.
The effect the drug has on the patient will help in the diagnosis. Tensilon will affect a patient with myasthenia gravis by allowing him a few minutes of muscle improvement. After the Tensilon injection, the doctor will ask the patient to perform an activity that involves muscle movements, such as getting up from a sitting position. To distinguish between myasthenia gravis and other conditions, during the Tensilon test, the patient may gradually receive more medication. In abnormal findings, such as cholinergic crisis or myasthenic crisis, the drug has different effects. In cholinergic crisis, the patient gets weaker with Tensilon while in myasthenic crisis, the patient gets improvement in muscle strength, but only briefly.
Myasthenia gravis is a disorder in which the affected person suffers from weak voluntary muscles. Voluntary muscles are those that a person normally controls, such as muscles in the arms or legs. The muscle weakness associated with this disorder occurs because of the nerves. The nerve that stimulates the particular muscle essentially does a poor job, thus causing muscle weakness. The poor interaction between the muscle and the associated nerve is caused by an autoimmune response in which the body’s immune cells attack healthy cells; this autoimmune response causes the body to produce antibodies that essentially block the interaction between the muscle and the nerve.
With myasthenia gravis, the more a person uses the affected muscles, the worse the condition becomes. Although muscle weakness can improve with rest, the weakness can cause the affected person to experience various symptoms, depending on which muscle is affected. For example, he may have difficulty breathing, chewing, or swallowing due to weakness in the muscles in the chest wall. He may also have mobility difficulties due to weak leg muscles, such as trouble climbing stairs or getting out of a chair. Also, you may experience weakness in your eye muscles or facial muscles.
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