Know the facts...
-- 1 in every 100,000 people are diagnosed with GBS
-- It's a disorder in which the body's immune system attacks part of the peripheral nervous system
-- The first symptoms include varying degrees of weakness or tingling sensations in the legs/arms
-- Symptoms can increase in intensity until certain muscles cannot be used at all
-- When severe, the person is almost or completely paralyzed
-- Can be life threatening - potentially interfering with breathing
-- Blood pressure or heart rate can rise and is considered a medical emergency
("Anesthesia stat" as they announce over the loud speaker)
-- Patient is often put on a ventilator to assist with breathing and is watched closely for abnormal heart beat, infections, blood clots, and high or low blood pressure
-- It can strike at any age
-- Both sexes are equally prone to the disorder
-- It occurs a few days or weeks after the patient has had symptoms of a respiratory or gastrointestinal viral infection
-- Occasionally surgery will trigger the syndrome
-- In some instances vaccinations may increase the risk of GBS
-- Symptoms can progress over the course of hours, days, or weeks (everyone is different)
-- GBS is NOT contagious
-- The body's immune system begins to attack the body itself, causing what is known as an autoimmune disease
-- The immune system starts to destroy the myelin sheath that surrounds the axons of the peripheral nerves, or even the axons themselves
-- Axons are long, thin extensions of the nerve cells; they carry nerve signals (Picture on home page)
-- The myelin sheath surrounding the axon speeds up the transmission of nerve signals and allows the signal speed over long distances
HOW DO DOCTORS DIAGNOSE US???
-- Reflexes such as knee jerks are usually lost
-- Nerve conduction velocity (NCV) test
-- If the cerebrospinal fluid that bathes the spinal cord and brain contains more protein than usual
-- Needle is inserted into the patient's lower back and a small amount of cerebrospinal fluid from the spinal column is withdrawn for study
HOW ARE GBS PATIENTS TREATED???
-- There is no known cure
-- Plasma exchange (also called plasmapheresis)
-- a method by which whole blood is removed from the body and processed so that the red and white blood cells are separated from the plasma, or liquid portion of the blood. The blood cells are then returned to the patient without the plasma, which the body quickly replaces
-- High-dose Immunoglobulin
-- Intravenous injections of the proteins that, in small quantities, the immune system uses naturally to attack invading organisms
-- Use of steroid hormones
***Most critical part of the treatment consists of keeping the patient's body functioning during recovery of the nervous system***
-- It's a disorder in which the body's immune system attacks part of the peripheral nervous system
-- The first symptoms include varying degrees of weakness or tingling sensations in the legs/arms
-- Symptoms can increase in intensity until certain muscles cannot be used at all
-- When severe, the person is almost or completely paralyzed
-- Can be life threatening - potentially interfering with breathing
-- Blood pressure or heart rate can rise and is considered a medical emergency
("Anesthesia stat" as they announce over the loud speaker)
-- Patient is often put on a ventilator to assist with breathing and is watched closely for abnormal heart beat, infections, blood clots, and high or low blood pressure
-- It can strike at any age
-- Both sexes are equally prone to the disorder
-- It occurs a few days or weeks after the patient has had symptoms of a respiratory or gastrointestinal viral infection
-- Occasionally surgery will trigger the syndrome
-- In some instances vaccinations may increase the risk of GBS
-- Symptoms can progress over the course of hours, days, or weeks (everyone is different)
-- GBS is NOT contagious
-- The body's immune system begins to attack the body itself, causing what is known as an autoimmune disease
-- The immune system starts to destroy the myelin sheath that surrounds the axons of the peripheral nerves, or even the axons themselves
-- Axons are long, thin extensions of the nerve cells; they carry nerve signals (Picture on home page)
-- The myelin sheath surrounding the axon speeds up the transmission of nerve signals and allows the signal speed over long distances
HOW DO DOCTORS DIAGNOSE US???
-- Reflexes such as knee jerks are usually lost
-- Nerve conduction velocity (NCV) test
-- If the cerebrospinal fluid that bathes the spinal cord and brain contains more protein than usual
-- Needle is inserted into the patient's lower back and a small amount of cerebrospinal fluid from the spinal column is withdrawn for study
HOW ARE GBS PATIENTS TREATED???
-- There is no known cure
-- Plasma exchange (also called plasmapheresis)
-- a method by which whole blood is removed from the body and processed so that the red and white blood cells are separated from the plasma, or liquid portion of the blood. The blood cells are then returned to the patient without the plasma, which the body quickly replaces
-- High-dose Immunoglobulin
-- Intravenous injections of the proteins that, in small quantities, the immune system uses naturally to attack invading organisms
-- Use of steroid hormones
***Most critical part of the treatment consists of keeping the patient's body functioning during recovery of the nervous system***