Treatment related fluctuations in Guillain-Barré syndrome after high-dose immunoglobulins or plasma-exchange.

Since the introduction of plasma exchange as a treatment for Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) patients, treatment related fluctuations have been found to occur in about 10% of the patients. These fluctuations are considered additional evidence of the beneficial effect of plasma exchange. In this report the occurrence of such treatment related fluctuations is described in the 147 patients who took part in the Dutch Guillain-Barré trial comparing high dose intravenous immunoglobulin with plasma exchange. Six of 72 patients in the plasma exchange group and eight of 74 in the immunoglobulin group showed such fluctuation. These results support the biological effect of immunoglobulin. More general use of immunoglobulin should await the full analysis of the Dutch GBS trial which is in progress.