NYMC Faculty Publications

Tremor Following Guillain Barré Syndrome

Author Type(s)

Faculty

DOI

10.5334/tohm.906

Journal Title

Tremor and Other Hyperkinetic Movements

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1-1-2024

Department

Neurology

Keywords

axonal, Guillain-Barré syndrome, neuropathic, polyneuropathy, tremor

Disciplines

Medicine and Health Sciences

Abstract

Background: Neuropathic tremor occurs with damage to the peripheral nervous system. Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) causes acute paralysis following nerve inflammation sometimes resulting in long-term disability. It is unclear how frequent and severe tremor is following GBS. Objectives: We aimed to assess the frequency and features of tremor following GBS. Methods: We enrolled 18 patients with GBS treated in a secondary care center within a 4-year period. Evaluations were done with the Fahn-Tolosa-Marin tremor rating scale (FTM-TRS). We compared these features with a cohort of consecutive patients with untreated essential tremor (ET). Results: There were 13 males and 5 females with a mean age at evaluation (S.D.) of 41.5 ± 14.0 years and at GBS onset of 40.2 ± 13.7. No patient had history of tremor before GBS. Upper limb tremor was identified in 16 (89%) cases, 35.5% of patients had FTM-TRS score ≥10 points. Tremor was mostly kinetic, jerky with low amplitude with a total score of 10.94 ± 11.84 in the FTM-TRS. Compared with patients with ET, those with GBS-tremor were younger and had lower scores in all subscales of the FTM-TRS (P value < 0.05 for all comparisons). In a multivariate linear regression analysis “days of hospitalization” had a positive association with the total FTM-TRS score (P = 0.001). Conclusions: Tremor was common following GBS. This tremor is mild compared with patients with ET, but adds functional impact.

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