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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Asian J Neurosurg 2024; 19(04): 579-582
DOI: 10.1055/s-0044-1788063
Review Article

Traumatic Brain Injury and Guillain-Barré Syndrome: Tale of an Illicit Affair—Case Report and Brief Review of Literature

Authors

  • Viraat Harsh    *

    1   Department of Neurosurgery, Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences, Ranchi, Jharkhand, India

  • Hemant Alda   *

    1   Department of Neurosurgery, Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences, Ranchi, Jharkhand, India

  • Saurav K. Besra

    1   Department of Neurosurgery, Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences, Ranchi, Jharkhand, India

  • Ujjawal Roy

    2   Department of Neurology, Roy Neuro Care, Bariatu, Ranchi, Jharkhand, India

  • Anil Kumar

    1   Department of Neurosurgery, Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences, Ranchi, Jharkhand, India
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Abstract

Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) is a common entity in neurology clinics. A variety of etiologies have been implicated in the presentation of GBS. Although rarely reported, traumatic brain injury (TBI) has also been reported to cause GBS. In this article, we report a similar case of GBS that occurred following TBI and the patient presented with acute flaccid paraparesis with intact strength in upper limbs. Paraparesis progressed to quadriparesis simulating a case of spinal injury, without any correlating imaging findings. Nerve conduction study findings, cerebrospinal fluid studies, and clinical examination led to the diagnosis of post-TBI GBS. A review of similar cases reported in literature is also attached. High index of suspicion should be maintained for GBS in all cases of imaging-negative post-TBI limb weakness which may simulate acute spinal injury.

Keywords

Guillain-Barré syndrome - head injury - traumatic brain injury - spinal cord injury - paraplegia

* Co-first authors




Publication History

Article published online:
11 July 2024

© 2024. Asian Congress of Neurological Surgeons. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial-License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

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