How do we identify infectious agents that trigger Guillain–Barré syndrome, Fisher syndrome and Bickerstaff brainstem encephalitis?

Acute flaccid paralysis with chronic cough

“…Most patients with GBS have a preceding infection, with epidemiological associations to Campylobacter jejuni , Mycoplasma pneumonia and Haemophilus influenzae 1. In our patient, the only organism isolated was M tuberculosis , associated with a chronic illness and unlikely to induce an acute autoimmune neurological illness such as GBS.…”

“…GBS, the most common polyradiculopathy, is typically preceded by an infective episode, most commonly acute respiratory infection or acute gastroenteritis: this can occur up to a month before the onset of neurological symptoms 1. Our patient described a chronic cough for more than 3 months, with systemic features of a chronic illness.…”

“…There are several criteria required to establish that a micro-organism has caused GBS: (1) epidemiological association between the micro-organism and disease; (2) isolation of the micro-organism during the acute progressive phase of the illness and not the recovery phase; (3) detection of antineural antibodies in the acute phase, with falling titres during the recovery phase; (4) molecular mimicry between the microbial and neural antigens; (5) induction of antineural antibodies by sensitisation to the microbe itself, or to its component in animals and (6) reproduction in animal models by inoculation with the microbe itself, or its component, and with the neural antigen 1. At present, only GBS related to C jejuni fulfils all these criteria.…”

Encefalitis de Bickerstaff: informe de caso y revisión de la literatura

“…De igual manera, estas moléculas comparten una gran similitud con los gangliósidos presentes en los axones tanto a nivel periférico como en el tallo cerebral, y que servirán de blanco para los anticuerpos de tipo IgG presentes hasta en 66 % de los pacientes (2,7,10,11).…”

“…Similitudes Diferencias Los patrones más comúnmente encontrados son la degeneración axonal en el 38 % y la desmielinización en el 6 % de los casos, así como potenciales de denervación (3,10,12,14).…”