Guillain-Barré Syndrome During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Pre-pandemic Periods

Abstract

Background: Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) is an autoimmune disease that may occur after infections. As Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) may bring about GBS, it is important to assess the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on this disease Objectives: This study aimed to compare the distribution and characteristics of GBS during and before the COVID-19 pandemic in an academic referral hospital in the north of Iran. Materials & Methods: This retrospective study assessed GBS distribution and characteristics during the COVID-19 pandemic period (from March 2020 to the end of February 2021) and before the pandemic (from March 2019 to the end of February 2020) on 5340 patients referred to the Neurology Ward of Poursina Hospital of Guilan Province, in Iran. Results: There was no significant difference between GBS distribution during (0.03%) and before (0.04%) the COVID-19 pandemic (P=0.413). There were also no differences between the two periods regarding the gender (P=0.659) and age (P=0.417) of the patients. The most common subtype of GBS during the COVID-19 pandemic was Acute Motor and Sensory Axonal Neuropathy (AMSAN) (71.4%). In both periods, the most common type of treatment was intravenous administration of immune globulin. There was no significant difference between the two periods (P=0.838) regarding the patients’ treatment response. Conclusion: The distribution of GBS, its subtypes, type of treatment, and response to treatment were not different between the two study periods.