The Epidemiology of Guillain-Barré Syndrome Worldwide

Abstract

Background: This systematic literature review of the epidemiology of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) identifies trends in incidence rates by age, study method and cause of disease. It is important to have a reliable estimate of incidence to determine and investigate any changes: no previous systematic reviews of GBS have been found. Methods: After critical assessment of the reliability of the reported data, incidence rates were extracted from all relevant papers published between 1980 and 2008, identified through searches of Medline, Embase and Science Direct. Results: Sixty-three papers were included in this review; these studies were prospective, retrospective reviews of medical records or retrospective database studies. Ten studies reported on the incidence in children (0–15 years old), and found the annual incidence to be between 0.34 and 1.34/100,000. Most studies investigated populations in Europe and North America and reported similar annual incidence rates, i.e. between 0.84 and 1.91/100,000. A decrease in incidence over the time between the 1980s and 1990s was found. Up to 70% of cases of GBS were caused by antecedent infections. Conclusions: Our best estimate of the overall incidence of GBS was between 1.1/100,000/year and 1.8/100,000/year. The incidence of GBS increased with age after 50 years from 1.7/100,000/year to 3.3/100,000/year.

High Incidence of Guillain-Barre Syndrome in Children, Bangladesh

“…Most incidence studies reported in the literature originate from Europe and North America ( 5 ). A recent review reported that the best estimate of the global incidence of GBS in children <15 years of age is 0.6 cases per 100,000 population per year ( 5 ).…”

“…A recent review reported that the best estimate of the global incidence of GBS in children <15 years of age is 0.6 cases per 100,000 population per year ( 5 ). Reports on incidence rates in developing countries are scarce.…”

Epidemiology of Guillain–Barré Syndrome in Aruba

“…This number exceeds the IR reported in most other studies. 4,16 To our knowledge, only a few other studies reported an IR as high as this one during a longer time period 1,5 including the study performed in Curaçao. 16 An important question to ask is whether this number truly reflects the IR of GBS.…”

“…To our knowledge, a seasonal preponderance in incidence has not been reported with significant difference. 1,[4][5][6]16,[19][20][21] Some of these studies show more cases in colder months. 16,21 One of the largest epidemiological studies conducted in southwest Netherlands 4 shows more cases during the winter and June, in Brazil a cluster of cases in spring and summer was reported 22 and in Sweden autumn was the season with most GBS cases.…”

“…GBS is the most frequent cause of acute flaccid paralysis, the worldwide incidence ranges from one to two cases per 100,000. [1][2][3] Males and older people are more likely to be affected. 4 GBS is often triggered by a preceding infection.…”