Lee Soo Ho, Jung Ji Yoon, Yoon Mi-Jeong, Kim Joon-Sung, Hong Bo Young, Im Sun, Yoo Yeun Jie
Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, St. Vincent's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Suwon 16247, Republic of Korea.
Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Bucheon St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Bucheon 14647, Republic of Korea.
Geriatrics (Basel). 2024 Jun 28;9(4):90. doi: 10.3390/geriatrics9040090.
Dysphagia is prevalent among the elderly and can lead to serious complications, often manifesting as a clinical symptom of various neurological or muscular pathologies, including Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS). GBS is an acute immune-mediated polyradiculoneuropathy, and dysphagia may arise during its course due to cranial nerve involvement. In rare GBS variants, dysphagia may present as the initial or sole clinical manifestation, posing diagnostic challenges. In this study, we present the case of an elderly female patient with dysphagia, eventually diagnosed with an atypical variant of GBS. Initially, the patient required nasogastric tube feeding; however, complete recovery was achieved through immunotherapy. This case underscores the importance of clinicians conducting thorough evaluations of factors influencing the swallowing mechanism and remaining vigilant about identifying uncommon causative factors. Such approaches enable the implementation of effective disease-modifying therapies, potentially leading to the resolution of dysphagic symptoms.
吞咽困难在老年人中很常见,并且可能导致严重并发症,常表现为各种神经或肌肉疾病的临床症状,包括吉兰 - 巴雷综合征(GBS)。GBS是一种急性免疫介导的多发性神经根神经病,在其病程中可能由于颅神经受累而出现吞咽困难。在罕见的GBS变异型中,吞咽困难可能表现为初始或唯一的临床表现,这带来了诊断挑战。在本研究中,我们报告了一例患有吞咽困难的老年女性患者,最终被诊断为GBS的非典型变异型。最初,患者需要鼻饲管喂养;然而,通过免疫治疗实现了完全康复。该病例强调了临床医生对影响吞咽机制的因素进行全面评估并对识别罕见致病因素保持警惕的重要性。这些方法能够实施有效的疾病改善疗法,有可能导致吞咽困难症状的缓解。