Recovery rate for patients with Guillain Barre Syndrome?

My mother was diagnosed with Guillain Barre Syndrome last week (10/22/06). She had some tingling in her finger tips and toes on Sunday afternoon, and felt weaker as the day went on. By Sunday night my father had to call an ambulance for her and by Monday evening she was completely paralized, in the ICU on a respirator. Two days later (Wednesday 10/24) she had her first plasmapherisis, and had 5 treatments, everyother day, today being the last treatment.

Since last week, she has recovered some movement in her arms and legs. She can wiggle her feet, and shrug her shoulders, and can shake her head "yes" and "no".

I want to know basically, when we an expect her to be off the respirator? How long does it take to be able to get out of bed? How long until she can walk on her own again? This disease came on so suddenly without warning, and my family is completely distraught over this. Any information would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

I mixed up the dates. My mother was diagnosed on Monday, October 23, 2006. She received her first plasmapherisis on Wednsday, October 25, 2006.

Hey, first of all you should know that guillain- Barr茅 syndrome has many presentations and different clinical forms, all which have a different prognosis. The fact that your mother had to be put on the respirator in the ICU means she had a severe type of this syndrome. Plasmapheresis is an adequate treatment and she seems to be making progress but still it could be a few more weeks before she doesn't need the respiratory support.You should ask the specific questions you are posting to your mother's doctor as he knows the case, still he might not be able to answer everything you want to know. You have to be patient!! i hope your mom recovers soon!

Hi. What a traumatic thing you are going through. These are all great questions, and best appropriate for your mom's dr. Since every body is different, it really depends on what stage of the disease she is in, how well she responds to treatment, age, overall health, etc. You should write your questions down and present them to her MD. He/she will be able to provide you will the most accurate answers.

Good luck.

What is the prognosis?


Guillain-Barr茅 syndrome can be a devastating disorder because of its sudden and unexpected onset. Most people reach the stage of greatest weakness within the first 2 weeks after symptoms appear, and by the third week of the illness 90 percent of all patients are at their weakest. The recovery period may be as little as a few weeks or as long as a few years. About 30 percent of those with Guillain-Barr茅 still have a residual weakness after 3 years. About 3 percent may suffer a relapse of muscle weakness and tingling sensations many years after the initial attack.

Yes I have a friend that has this disease,she was doing the same thing youe Mom was doing,she worked along side of me,we were both hairdressers...Hers started when she got bitten by a snake in her flower bed,and after she got so bad and kelp going to the hospital,they finally told us she had Guillain Barre syndrome,I had never heard of it before....I can tell you she could not walk,go to the bathroom by herself,had to be held up,fed,etc,she was in bad condition....BUT the GOOD news is! that lady is back to work and doing good ,it left her with some weaknesses in her muscles,etc but she does great now,the recovery rate is fairley good but it will take a while....This happened to my friend about 4 years ago and it took her a year to start recovery....The disease does come on suddenly and we all thought it was from the snake bite,we never found out but they don,t seem to know what caused it.If this bite did cause my friend to have this disease,it could be that something bit your mom,who knows....But she should get better,but it may leave her with some muscle weakness....I am so sorry you ae having to go though this,we were all so devastated,so i understand....There is another disease that acts the same way as Guillain Barre,and that is Lou Garrets disease,they act the same way and have the same syymtoms....Good luck