Clinical profile and outcome of elders with Guillain-Barre syndrome: A Case series

Background: Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) is an acute inflammatory polyradiculoneuropathy characterized by ascending paralysis with areflexia. All age groups are affected with increased incidence among the elders. Literature shows scarce information on the clinical presentation and functional outcome of elder’s affected by this condition especially among the South Asian countries. Case presentation: We present 5 cases of GBS, all aged above 60 years during the period November 2023 to February 2024. All had weakness of both lower limbs followed by upper except for one with vice versa. There was no cranial or respiratory involvement. Four patients were classified as acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (AIDP) variant while one with acute motor axonal neuropathy (AMAN). Only one patient reported antecedent occurrence of fever with flu-like symptoms. All patients received intravenous immunoglobulins for 5 days along with physiotherapy. The recovery period varied between 1 week and 3 months with no residual weakness. Conclusion: Our study highlights that prompt diagnosis and treatment can have good prognosis among elders with GBS. History of any illness or trigger factors leading to GBS is less among elders.