Guillain-Barre Syndrome

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Overview, Causes, & Risk Factors

Guillain-Barre syndrome is an acute type of nerve inflammation. The inflammation damages portions of the nerve cell, resulting in muscle weakness or paralysis and sensory loss. The damage usually includes loss of the myelin sheath of the nerve (demyelination), which slows the conduction of impulses through the nerve.

The damage can also cause denervation (kill the axon part of the nerve cell), which stops nerve function entirely. Without the axon, messages cannot be transferred from one nerve cell to another.

The exact cause of this disorder is unknown. It may occur at any age but is most common in people of both sexes between the ages 30 and 50. It often follows a minor infection, usually a respiratory (lung) infection or gastrointestinal (gut) infection. Signs of the original infection have usually disappeared before the signs of Guillain-Barre begin.

Guillain-Barre syndrome may occur in association with viral infections like mononucleosis, AIDS, and herpes simplex or after infections with bacteria, such as mycoplasma and some types of diarrhea. Sometimes Guillain-Barre occurs after recent surgery or vaccinations (such as rabies and swine flu vaccines) or in association with other medical problems such as systemic lupus erythematosus or Hodgkin's disease.