Key result
Guillain-Barré syndrome was the most common cause of acute flaccid paralysis in adults, accounting for 50.5% of cases, followed by hypokalemic paralysis (25.8%) and neuroparalytic snake bite (15.5%).
Why the study?
The study was conducted to determine the etiology and outcome of acute flaccid paralysis in adults at a tertiary care center in North India.
Observational (n=97)
No
In this North Indian cohort, Guillain-Barré syndrome was the most common cause of acute flaccid paralysis in adults, followed by hypokalemic paralysis and neuroparalytic snake bite.
Highlights GBS predominance in adult AFP locally; leaves open broader applicability beyond this single-center study.
INTRODUCTION: The World Health Organization defines acute flaccid paralysis syndrome as rapid onset of weakness of an individual's extremities, often including weakness of the muscles of respiration and swallowing, progressing to maximum severity within 1 to 10 days. We carried out this observational study in a tertiary care center in North India with the aim of determining the etiology and outcome of Acute Flaccid Paralysis in adults. METHODS: In this observational study, all cases diagnosed with Acute flaccid paralysis admitted to the tertiary care center from 1st January 2015 till 30th June 2016 were enrolled. Ninety-seven consecutive patients of age above 18 years presenting with weakness of duration less than two weeks were enrolled after obtaining informed consent and various investigations were studied. RESULTS: The study analyzed data of 97 patients presenting with flaccid paralysis. They were analyzed for the demographic data, clinical features, investigations, electrophysiological data, and results of the treatment. The most common etiology of acute flaccid paralysis in this entire population was GBS, which was responsible for 50.5% of the cases, followed by the Hypokalemic paralysis (25.8%) followed by neuroparalytic snake bite (15.5%).In this study, 48% of patients with hypokalemic paralysis had a secondary cause for their condition. Primary hypokalemic periodic paralysis occurred in 52% of patients. CONCLUSIONS: In this observational study, GBS was found to be the most common cause for Acute Flaccid Paralysis followed by Neuroparalytic snake bite. Respiratory paralysis was an important risk factor associated with mortality.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Gupta et al. (2020) conducted an observational in Acute Flaccid Paralysis (n=97). Acute Flaccid Paralysis etiologies was evaluated on Etiology of Acute Flaccid Paralysis. Guillain-Barré syndrome was the most common cause of acute flaccid paralysis in adults, accounting for 50.5% of cases, followed by hypokalemic paralysis (25.8%) and neuroparalytic snake bite (15.5%).
Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context: