What is Guillain-Barré syndrome?

(CNN Spanish) – This is what we know about Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS).

What is it?

Guillain-Barré syndrome is an autoimmune disease that causes muscle weakness or paralysis.

How common is it?

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it is a rare, unusual disorder. On rare occasions, cases of the syndrome have occurred in people who have been vaccinated against influenza.

What treatment is there for GBS?

Symptoms can last a few weeks. Although most people make a full recovery, there are those who can be left with long-term damage to the neurological system. In very rare cases, GBS can cause death.

Who is at risk of developing this condition?

The syndrome is more common among older adults, the CDC states, but anyone can develop it. “The incidence of GBS increases with age, and people over the age of 50 are at the greatest risk for developing GBS.”

What causes it?

There are multiple factors that can cause GBS. About 60 percent of people who develop it have previously had diarrhea or a respiratory illness caused by infection with the bacteria Campylobacter jejuni, the CDC says. “People can also develop GBS after having influenza or other infections (such as cytomegalovirus and Epstein Barr virus).” The Zika virus is one of the causes, as confirmed by the WHO.

What does it have to do with Zika?

The Zika virus can be one of the causes for the syndrome to develop.

The Zika virus spread explosively in the Americas in 2016, which worried global health authorities. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared at that time a public health emergency due to the situation that has caused Zika.

The WHO confirmed that Zika can cause microcephaly in newborn babies and Guillain-Barré syndrome in other patients.

Editor’s Note: This text was initially published in 2016 and updated in 2021.