[Guillain-Barré syndrome and Fisher syndrome]

Guillain-Barré syndrome is an acute inflammatory polyneuropathy that usually follows infections. Fisher syndrome is a variant of Guillain-Barré syndrome, the triads of which are ophthalmoplegia, ataxia and areflexia. Although the agents for the preceding infections cannot be determined in many cases, those viruses such as Cytomegalovirus, Epstein-Barr virus, and HIV as well as Mycoplasma and bacteria including Campylobacter jejuni have been reported. The pathogenetic mechanisms may be immune-mediated. Frequent elevation of antiglycolipid antibodies in acute phase sera from patients with Guillain-Barré syndrome has recently been reported. They are useful diagnostic markers and clues for elucidation of the pathogenetic mechanism. In particular, IgG anti-GQ1b antibody is known to be specifically associated with Fisher syndrome and Guillain-Barré syndrome with ophthalmoplegia.