Pain in Guillain–Barré syndrome

Abstract

Evaluation of: Ruts L, Drenthen J, Jongen JL et al. Pain in Guillain–Barré syndrome: a long-term follow-up study. Neurology 75, 1439–1447 (2010).

Pain has been recognized as an important symptom of Guillain–Barré syndrome (GBS). The article under review prospectively studied the phenomenon of pain in a cohort of 156 GBS patients for a period of 1 year. It confirmed that pain of significant intensity is relatively common in all subtypes of GBS. It may start before the onset of other symptoms. It correlates with sensory loss, severity of the GBS at its nadir and the presence of diarrhea. In the recovery/chronic stages it correlates with weakness, disability and fatigue. Up to a third of patients have pain at 1 year.

Keywords::

• Guillain–Barré syndrome
• pain
• peripheral neuropathy

Financial & competing interests disclosure

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.