Increased rates of Guillain-Barré syndrome associated with Zika virus outbreak in the Salvador metropolitan area, Brazil.

Increased rates of Guillain-Barré syndrome associated with Zika virus outbreak in the Salvador metropolitan area, Brazil. PLoS neglected tropical diseases Styczynski, A. R., Malta, J. M., Krow-Lucal, E. R., Percio, J., Nóbrega, M. E., Vargas, A., Lanzieri, T. M., Leite, P. L., Staples, J. E., Fischer, M. X., Powers, A. M., Chang, G. J., Burns, P. L., Borland, E. M., Ledermann, J. P., Mossel, E. C., Schonberger, L. B., Belay, E. B., Salinas, J. L., Badaro, R. D., Sejvar, J. J., Coelho, G. E. 2017; 11 (8): e0005869

Abstract

In mid-2015, Salvador, Brazil, reported an outbreak of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), coinciding with the introduction and spread of Zika virus (ZIKV). We found that GBS incidence during April-July 2015 among those =12 years of age was 5.6 cases/100,000 population/year and increased markedly with increasing age to 14.7 among those =60 years of age. We conducted interviews with 41 case-patients and 85 neighborhood controls and found no differences in demographics or exposures prior to GBS-symptom onset. A higher proportion of case-patients (83%) compared to controls (21%) reported an antecedent illness (OR 18.1, CI 6.9-47.5), most commonly characterized by rash, headache, fever, and myalgias, within a median of 8 days prior to GBS onset. Our investigation confirmed an outbreak of GBS, particularly in older adults, that was strongly associated with Zika-like illness and geo-temporally associated with ZIKV transmission, suggesting that ZIKV may result in severe neurologic complications.

View details for DOI 10.1371/journal.pntd.0005869

View details for PubMedID 28854206

View details for PubMedCentralID PMC5595339