Guillain-Barré syndrome in children: evidence of axonal degeneration and long-term follow-up.

Abstract

A retrospective study was done of 12 children who met the NINCDS clinical criteria for the diagnosis of Guillain-Barré syndrome and who were hospitalized with this diagnosis. Electrodiagnostic testing was sufficiently complete for interpretation of the neuropathophysiology in six children. Long-term outcome was determined through examination by a physician one to eight years after onset in all six children, and was supplemented by telephone follow-up with the children or their parents by the authors five to eight years after onset. Long-term clinical outcome was analyzed for any correlation between poor outcome and axonal degeneration. The electrodiagnostic tests were consistent with primarily axonal neuropathophysiology in three of the six children. Poor clinical outcome appeared to correlate with electrodiagnostic evidence of primarily axonal pathophysiology, or absence of an evoked M-response, or both.