Abstract
We report the effects of treatment with plasma-exchange (PE) and intravenous immune globulins (IVIg) in 36 out of 50 patients with Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) recruited by an incidence study in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Comparison of the patients treated with PE and IVIg showed no significant differences in terms of effectiveness in improving the clinical course of GBS: at one month, respectively 11.1% and 25% had recovered, and 55.5% and 58.3% had improved by at least one grade. These results are in agreement with those of the Dutch GBS trial. No relapses were observed in either group. Moreover, our results showed no difference in clinical outcome at 1 and 3 months between the patients receiving only one therapy and those receiving two; a second cycle of therapy did not seem to improve the clinical course of the disease significantly. We conclude that PE and IVIg are both safe and effective therapies for GBS.
Sommario
Riportiamo i risultati del trattamento con plasmaferesi (PE) e immunoglobuline (IVIg) in 36 su 50 pazienti con sindrome di Guillain-Barré (GBS) reclutati attraverso uno studio di incidenza condotto in Emilia-Romagna.
Il confronto fra PE e IVIg non ha evidenziato differenze significative per quanto concerne la capacità di migliorare il decorso della malattia. Complessivamente, nei trattati con IVIg e PE il 25% e l'11,1% rispettivamente erano guariti ad un mese, mentre il 58,3% e il 55,5% erano migliorati di almeno un grado. Questi risultati sono in accordo con le conclusioni del Dutch GBS Trial per ciò che concerne l'outcome a un mese. Nessuna ricaduta è stata osservata nei due gruppi. Inoltre, non è stata osservata nessuna differenza nell'outcome clinico a 1 e 3 mesi tra i pazienti che ricevettero una sola o due terapie. Un secondo ciclo di terapia non sembra migliorare significativamente il decorso clinico della malattia. PE e IVIg sono entrambe sicure ed efficaci nella terapia della GBS.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Asbury A.K.:Diagnostic considerations in Guillain-Barré syndrome. Ann. Neurol. 9 (suppl.): 1–5, 1981.
Bleck T.P.:IVIg for GBS: potential problems in the alphabet soup. Neurology 43:857–858, 1993.
Castro L.H.M., Ropper A.H.:Human immune globulin infusion in Guillain-Barré syndrome: worsening during and after treatment. Neurology 43:1034–1036, 1993.
Hughes R.A.C., Newson-Davis J.M., Perkin G.D., Pierce J.M.:Controlled trial of prednisolone in acute polyneuropathy. Lancet 2:750–753, 1978.
Irani D.N., Cornblath D.R., Chaudhry V., Borel C., Hanley D.F.:Relapse in Guillain-Barré syndrome after treatment with human immune globulin. Neurology 43:872–875, 1993.
Kleyweg R.P., van der Merché F.G.A.:Treatment related fluctuations in Guillain-Barré syndrome after high-dose immunoglobulins or plasma-exchange. J. Neurol. Neurosurg. Psychiatry 54:957–960, 1991.
van der Meché F.G.A., Schmitz P.I.M.,The Dutch Guillain-Barré Group:A randomized trial comparing intravenous immune glubulin and plasma exchange in Guillain-Barré syndrome. N. Engl. J. Med. 326:1123–1129, 1992.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Consortia
Additional information
This work was supported by MURST (60%).
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Emilia-Romagna Study Group on Clinical and Epidemiological Problems in Neurology Italy., Participating Centers., Ravasio, A. et al. High dose intravenous immune globulins and plasma exchange in Guillain-Barré Syndrome. Ital J Neuro Sci 16, 487–492 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02229327
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02229327