Background
Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), the most common cause of acute paralytic neuropathy, covers a number of recognizably different
variants. We aimed to evaluate the clinical characteristics of the patients with GBS and the outcome results of the patients after
rehabilitation.
Methods
We enrolled 24 adult patients with GBS and evaluated their demographic characteristics, signs, complications, functional levels, and
residual symptoms at admission, discharge, and during the 1st and 3rd-year follow-up visits. Functional Independence Scale (FIM),
Functional Ambulation Scale (FAS), Hughes functional grading scale, Six-Minute Walking Test (6MWT), and Fatigue Severity Scale
(FSS) were used for patient evaluation.
Results
In this study, patients with a mean age of 47.29 ± 16.2 years (40% female) were hospitalized for an average of 28.91 ± 25.6 days.
The predominant symptoms experienced by these patients were fatigue (100%), neuropathic pain (70.8%), joint pain (54.2%), and
autonomic dysfunction (50%). Significant changes were observed in FIM, Hughes functional grading scale, FAS, 6MWT, and MRC
score at admission, discharge, and 1st/3rd-year follow-ups (p=0.000, p=0.000, p=0.000, p=0.001, p=0.000, respectively). Fatigue and
Hughes score increased significantly with age (p=0.019, r=0.475; p=0.041, r=0.419, respectively). Negative correlations were found
between age and FAS, 6MWT, and MRC score at 1st-year follow-up (p=0.025, r=-0.456; p=0.027, r=-0.450; p=0.008, r=-0.528).
FSS was above 4 before admission and in 53.1% at 3rd-year follow-up, correlating negatively with 6MWT and MRC sum score. GBS
clinical types showed no significant differences.
Conclusion
Rehabilitation improves functional improvement in GBS patients, with long-term benefits observed. However, residual symptoms
such as fatigue and neuropathic pain may persist despite functional improvement. These findings highlight the importance of
incorporating rehabilitation into the management of GBS and addressing residual symptoms to improve patient outcomes.