Recurrent Fisher-Bickerstaff syndrome: report of a Chinese case

Fisher-Bickerstaff syndrome (FBS) was recently proposed to help to diagnose the conditions that overlap Fisher syndrome and Bickerstaff’s brainstem encephalitis, as well as the unclassified conditions that had ophthalmoplegia and ataxia with clear consciousness, flexor plantar response and preserved tendon reflexes. Recurrences are exceptional with Guillain-Barré syndrome and its variants. Here we reported a patient with diagnosis of recurrent FBS. The patient presented with recurrent drowsiness, unsteady gait, diplopia and reduced deep tendon reflexes, which met the diagnostic criteria for FBS. The interval was eight months. He was treated with intravenous immunoglobulins during each episode and got good recovery. To our knowledge, this is a relatively early report about recurrent FBS case that had central and peripheral involvement during each episode in China.