COVID-19 Infection and Guillain-Barre Syndrome: A Case Series

Cureus. 2022 Feb 7;14(2):e21998. doi: 10.7759/cureus.21998. eCollection 2022 Feb.

Abstract

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic brought about an unprecedented time. Multiple systemic complications have been recognized with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) as it can do much more than affect the respiratory system. One of the intriguing neurological complications is Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS). We reviewed three cases in which patients presented with GBS following COVID-19 infection. All three cases had positive lumbar puncture results with albumino-cytological dissociation. Each patient was treated with plasmapheresis and improved clinically. Although an exact causal relationship between COVID-19 and GBS cannot be drawn from this case series alone, it signifies the importance of this complication. It warrants further studies to establish the causal relationship. One should have a high suspicion for acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (AIDP) in patients presenting with acute onset of ascending weakness following COVID-19 infection.

Keywords: acute inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy; albuminocytologic dissociation; covid-19; cytokine storm; gullian-barre syndrome; myasthenia gravis; neurological complication.

Publication types

  • Case Reports