Guillain-Barré syndrome associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection: A case report in Mexico

Abstract

In December 2019, the first cases of COVID-19 were reported in Wuhan, China. Up to now, it has affected over 60 million people worldwide. COVID-19 is a multi-systemic disease; in addition to respiratory manifestations, various neurological complications have been identified, including encephalitis, stroke, and Guillain-Barré syndrome. Guillain-Barré syndrome is a condition of immune-mediated polyneuropathies frequently associated with infections. We present the case of a 41-year-old man that, after a 5-day history of non-productive cough, headache, muscle pain, joint pain, anosmia, ageusia, and non-quantified temperature rise; developed loss of tendon flexes and lower limbs weakness that progressed to walking disability, upper limbs weakness, and bilateral facial paresis. An oropharyngeal swab polymerase chain reaction confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection, and the cerebrospinal analysis reported albuminocytologic dissociation. Nerve conduction studies showed acute inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (AIDP). He received a 5-day course of intravenous immune globulin. There have been numerous reports of Guillain-Barré syndrome associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection worldwide; however, few cases have been reported in Latin America.