So the husband of a grad school friend of mine had the flu a week or so ago and now is in the hospital on a feeding tube and ventilator with both legs and arms paralyzed. They say he has Guillain-Barre and that he'll recover, but it sounds awful to me and incomprehensible that this comes simply as a possible reaction to the flu. Does anyone else know about this that can shed some light? Maybe offer some hope I can pass on to my friend?
It might be assburgers syndrome.
You'll get much better info by googling it than by asking this message board
I already have. I was hoping for some firsthand experiences that might provide some comfort that this will pass. But school's out and the children are home, bored and posting on LR. Any helpful people around, or are you all out Christmas shopping?
Mrs. M wrote:
but it sounds awful to me and incomprehensible that this comes simply as a possible reaction to the flu.
That's because you don't understand pathophysiology and/or immunology.
The idea is that a viral illness triggers the person's autoimmune system to fight said illness. In some individuals (and, unfortunately, for reasons that we do not fully understand either yet), an OVERreaction of the autoimmune system occurs, and is manifested in Guillain-Barre.
Well, most patients will recover from even the most severe cases, although some continue to have some degree of weakness (~30% after 3 years...only 3% suffer relapses after initial attack)
Most people reach the stage of greatest weakness within the first 2 weeks after symptoms appear, and by the third week of illness ~90% of all patients are at their weakest.
The recovery can be in as little as a few weeks or as long as a few years.
Make sure he has a good MD and diligent therapists.
Well, thanks for the lesson. Are there cases where people don't recover from the auto-immune response of paralysis?
Well, they're in Houston, so I'd hope he's getting top-notch treatment. I didn't realize it could go on so long. Thanks for the info - I was hoping for something more positive, but thanks.
My brother had it when he was in 6th grade. He was in the hospital for three weeks and almost died. Then he rallied and was at home instead of in school for probably the second half of the school year. He recovered completely except for a little loss of muscle control in his legs. He had a normal teen, college, etc. life and really has no symptoms from it today, more than 35 years later. Good luck.
I have a twelve year old daughter who came down with GB shortly after turning two. In her case we think it was triggered by an immunization shot. It started three days before Christmas with her having trouble opening one eye. The next day she could barely walk. By Christmas Eve she was almost totally paralyzed. She spent 10 days on a ventilator and a little over three weeks in the hospital. The recovery was very slow, but pretty much complete (she had to relearn all her motor skills). She's a very happy, well adjusted 12 year old now, but there are definitely lingering effects. She walks with a very slight stiffness in her gait and she's not nearly as athletic as any of her three sisters.
We were told that we were fortunate in a way that she got it so young, as it can be a more difficult recovery at an older age.
Common Sense Says wrote:
You'll get much better info by googling it than by asking this message board
No, not really.
My mother had GB about 2 years ago, now. She had a very bad case of the flu, and then the GB developed a week or two afterwards. She developed severe pain in her lumbar region, so bad that she went to the ER, and from there to intensive care, and then a normal hospital room for about 2 weeks, IIRC.
The progression of the disease was completely different from how it is characterized when you Google it. Her neurologist accurately predicted the path it would take, and explained that Google returns the most popular results, which are generally the most interesting, but not always the most accurate.
In her case, there was never any paralysis, just intense pain (they had her on a self-administered pain medication drip), and also a loss of hearing and substantial weakness.
She was in the hospital for about 2 weeks to be treated with immunoglobulins, and forbidden by her neurologist from working for about 3 months. By the end of the three months, she was basically fine -- still a bit weak and with a slight hearing loss, but nothing terribly noticeable.
Overall advice -- do not panic, based on what you've read on Google.
Thanks so much for all these anecdotal posts - especially darkwave's - I was hoping to hear of an adult's experience with this. This man is about 36 with a young (2+) child. He plays French horn, so I hope he doesn't experience the hearing loss. Luckily, both of their families are in the area to help out the wife and child. This sort of thing is especially tough around the holidays.
Mrs. M wrote:
Thanks so much for all these anecdotal posts - especially darkwave's - I was hoping to hear of an adult's experience with this. This man is about 36 with a young (2+) child. He plays French horn, so I hope he doesn't experience the hearing loss. Luckily, both of their families are in the area to help out the wife and child. This sort of thing is especially tough around the holidays.
No prob. FWIW, my mother was in her late 60s at the time, so obviously much older than he.
I can sympathize with the holidays -- my mother was hospitalized a week before Christmas. By Christmas, she was still in the hospital, but recovered enough to handle a celebration, so we brought Christmas to her.
And believe it or not, it was one of the best Christmases in a while - the whole episode really put things in perspective, and made us appreciate what we have (and hold off on the sniping and griping).
Might find that article interesting and encouraging - last spring that kid couldn't walk, now it's a question of which top-tier football program he'll sign with.