Context: In a rare complication, some patients infected with Covid-19 have been found suffering from Guillain Barre Syndrome (GBS). In India, such cases have been reported since August.

What is Guillain Barre Syndrome?

• It is a very rare autoimmune disorder.
• The immune system, in an attempt to kill the coronavirus, accidentally starts attacking the peripheral nervous system.
• The peripheral nervous system is a network of nerves that lead from the brain and spinal cord to different parts of the body.
• Attacking them can affect limb functions.
• The syndrome’s first symptoms are a tingling or itching sensation in the skin, followed by muscle weakness, pain and numbness.
• The symptoms may emerge first in feet and hands. A person then starts experiencing reflex loss and paralysis, which may be temporary, but can last for 6-12 months or longer.
• With Covid-19 a year old, it is still difficult to assess the nature of permanency GBS in such cases may present.
• GBS is caused by bacteria or viral infection.
• In the past, patients of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome showed GBS symptoms, as did those infected with Zika, HIV, Herpes virus and Campylobacter jejuni.

Guillain Barre Syndrome and Covid-19

• Covid-19 is known to affect digestive, cardiac and kidney functions.
• It is also known that some –– not all –– patients are prone to neurological problems if they contract the virus.
• The virus can cause memory fog, anxiety, headache and depression if it attacks parts of the brain which form the central nervous system.
• In all these cases, the virus attacks the organs or tissues directly leading to the complication.
• But in some cases, it can have an indirect effect. It can trigger an immune response so powerful that the body’s peripheral nervous system can come under attack.

Treatment

• Intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) and sometimes plasma therapy helps recovery in patients with GBS.
• Some patients may develop severe complications and require intensive care treatment or ventilator support.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-what-is-the-guillain-barre-syndrome-some-covid-19-patients-develop-7056256/

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