title: [Multiple cranial neuropathy: an atypical variant of the Guillain-Barre syndrome?].
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Multiple cranial neuropathy or polineuritis cranealis is rarely seen in everyday clinical practice. It is considered to be a topographically circumscribed form of the Guillain-Barré syndrome. The cases described have a wide range of clinical and biological characteristics. Some of these may be due to infectious agents.
  
  
  METHODS
  We present the case of a 50 year old man with acute onset of diplopia, dysphagia, anarthria, cervical and right arm flexor-extensor muscle weakness due to involvement of many motor cranial nerves and superior cervical nerve roots. On neurological examination there was mixed involvement, mainly of the axons of the nerve trunks involved. Studies to determine aetiology did not show any demonstrable agent.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Different topographical varieties of the Guillain-Barré syndrome have been described, including: Fisher's syndrome, pharyngo-cervico-brachial paralysis, arreflexive paraparesia, bilateral facial paralysis with paraesthesias, hyporeflexia and bilateral lumbar polyradiculopathy. We compare the clinical characteristics of our patient with those described in the literature. We found a degree of heterogenicity in the clinical and biological characteristics of the cases described, which may mean that they had different aetiologies. Therefore, we consider that before labelling these conditions as atypical variants of the Guillain-Barré syndrome, a thorough search should be made for a precise aetiology.
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Neurología, Hospital Universitario de Salamanca, España.
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Gómez-Sánchez
authors.forename: M T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Adeva
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ciudad
authors.forename: M M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Marcos
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: López-Alburquerque
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fermoso
mesh_terms: D001369:Axons / Q000473:pathology; D003391:Cranial Nerves / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D020275:Guillain-Barre Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011115:Polyneuropathies / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology*