Residual health status after Guillain-Barre syndrome

To study the extent to which patients experience residual problems in daily functioning several years after having Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) a survey of 123 patients who had had Guillain-Barre syndrome three to six years previously was performed, using the sickness impact profile (SIP) for measuring functional health status and a functional assessment scale (F score) for measuring physical condition. The patients were diagnosed according to the international criteria for Guillain-Barre syndrome and were at the time of diagnosis unable to walk more than 10 metres without support. The physical SIP score correlated positively with final physical recovery (Pearson's r = 0.79). The psychosocial SIP score indicated impairment in all patient groups compared with matched normal control values; they included the group with no, or mild, residual symptoms (P <0.05). No relation was found between clinical variables related to the severity or duration of Guillain-Barre syndrome and residual psychosocial dysfunctioning, except for a relation with disturbance of sensation in the arms. In conclusion, in many patients with Guillain-Barre syndrome, psychosocial functioning is still seriously affected, even when they have physically recovered, or show only mild residual signs

Long-term impact on work and private life after Guillain-Barre syndrome

Objective: To determine the long-term impact of Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) on work and private life of patients and their partners. Methods: Three to six years after the onset of GBS 150 patients who participated in the Dutch Guillain-Barre trial received a questionnaire specifically drafted for this study to survey their present psychosocial status. Furthermore, their present physical status was established. Results: A total of 122 patients participated. Thirty-one percent showed moderate to serious physical residua after a functional assessment. Due to GBS, 38% of the patients who held a job had to change it, 44% altered their leisure activities, 37% of the patients did not function as well at home as before GBS and 39% reported a change in their partners' lives. Almost half of the patients still had negative comments on their present psychosocial situation. Conclusion: GBS has a serious long-term impact on the patients' work and private life and that of their partners. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V All rights reserved

Residual physical outcome and daily living 3 to 6 years after Guillain-Barre syndrome

Three to six years after onset of Guillain-Barre syndrome, 63% of 122 patients showed one or more changes in their lifestyle, work, or leisure activities, or in the life of their partners. The changes were influenced by an impaired final functional outcome, along with loss of power and poor condition, although physically recovered patients showed these changes as well