Disease Diary Blog: Nervous System - Guillain-Barre Syndrome

http://www.umm.edu/nervous/guillain.htm

Disease - Guillain-Barre Syndrome

Common Name - Guillain-Barre Syndrome, or GBS

Age of Onset- There is no exact age of onset, all cases of GBS involve a sudden, unexpected onset of the disease.

Duration - Like age of onset, there is no particular duration of GBS, some people recover from GBS within months, while for others it may take years.

Common in particular groups? GBS most often occurs in the elderly and young adults and AIDS victims. People with weak immune systems seem to be at a higher risk for GBS.

Cause- The exact cause of GBS is not yet known, because it is such a rare disease (affecting only 1 in 100,000) scientists have yet to conduct very in depth analysis of the disease. Some studies show that certain respiratory or digestive infections have lead to the disease, however some cases of the disease without any triggers. In GBS, the patients immune system, which usually attacks foreign bodies, unexpectedly begins to attack the nervous system. It attacks the axons and the thin sheath that surrounds it and sometimes destroys the axon all together. With the damaged nerve, the patient may experience weakness, numbness, and paralysis.

Symptoms - GBS symptoms begin with a numbness and tingling starting usually at the feet and progressively moved toward the head. As the disease progresses, paralysis may occur. Other symptoms are:

• Difficulty with eye movement, facial movement, speaking, chewing or swallowing
• Severe pain in the lower back
• Difficulty with bladder control or intestinal functions
• Very slow heart rate or low blood pressure
• Difficulty breathing

Prognosis - GBS is not usually a life-threatening disease (very rarely, the disease affects the muscles that control breathing, causing death). A spinal tap is inserted into the spine to draw spinal fluid to recognize the disease, as it may be hard to diagnose in its earliest stages. Once diagnosed, the patient begins to feel symptoms on both sides of their bodies and lose their basic reflexes. It is then that the patient is given the known therapies and the symptoms begin to diminish. Once the patient has regained their strength, they attend physical therapy to help them remain strong to live with GBS.

Treatment Options- There is no cure for GBS. However, there are some therapies that have been developed to help lessen the severity of the patients symptoms. One therapy that is used is Plasmapheresis, this treatment is a type of "blood cleansing" in which damaging antibodies are removed from your blood. Without these antibodies in your blood, the nervous systems is less likely to be attacked by the immune system. Another treatment option is the use of intravenous immunoglobulin, this contains healthy antibodies from blood donors, and high doses can block the dangerous antibodies produced by GBS.