ELECTROPHYSIOLOGICAL STUDIES IN GUILLAIN-BARRE-SYNDROME - CORRELATIONWITH ANTIBODIES TO GM1, GD1B AND CAMPYLOBACTER-JEJUNI

A retrospective study of 50 patients with Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS ) correlated analysis of serial motor nerve conduction studies with th e presence of antibodies to Campylobacter jejuni, GM1 and GD1b, determ ined by ELISA. GBS patients with antibodies to C. jejuni (n = 8), GM1 (n = 4), or GD1b (n = 4) showed electrophysiological features suggesti ve of demyelination with prolonged distal motor latencies and temporal dispersion/conduction block similar to GBS patients without these spe cific antibodies. Three of 50 GBS patients had poor recovery with inab ility to walk at 1 year after onset of symptoms. All three patients ha d antibodies to C. jejuni, but not to GM1 or GD1b. Although later on i n the clinical course distal motor responses were absent in two of the se patients, reflecting extensive axonal degeneration, early nerve con duction studies showed findings suggestive of demyelination. We sugges t that demyelination of peripheral nerve may be the initial disease me chanism in GBS independent of the presence of antibodies to C. jejuni, GM1 or GD1b.