Abstract
Background
Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) is a rare neurologic disorder with potential associations with viral triggers. This study aimed to investigate the incidence of GBS and its variants during COVID-19 pandemic in patients admitted to Kerman Shafa Hospital within 2020-2023.Methods
This was retrospective cross-sectional analysis of GBS cases reported during the COVID-19 pandemic in Shafa Hospital -Kerman during 2020-2023. to explore the incidence rate of GBS and, the association between demographic variables, the history of COVID-19 infection and vaccination within one month of GBS diagnosis, and the clinical outcomes. Data were analyzed using the SPSS 26 software.Results
A total of 87 patients with GBS were reported between 2020 and 2023, of whom 75.9% were men and the average age of the patients was 43.62 ± 20.85 years. The most common variants included AIDP (56.3%) and AMAN (24.1%). Overall, 21.8% of patients had a history of COVID-19 infection in the past month and 19.5% had positive COVID-19 PCR test. There was no significant association between the distributions of disease variants with other variables except year. The incidence rate of GBS in the population covered by Kerman University of Medical Sciences was estimated to be 1.33 cases per 100,000 person-year.Conclusion
Our study suggests that the overall incidence rate and clinical outcomes of GBS remained relatively consistent with pre-pandemic levels. Further research is needed to elucidate the complex relationship between GBS, COVID-19, and vaccination and to explore potential risk factors for severe outcomes in GBS patients.