title: Campylobacter-associated Guillain-Barré syndrome after orthotopic liver transplantation for hepatitis C cirrhosis: a case report.
abstract: Guillain-Barré syndrome is characterized by acute paralysis and ascending neuropathy due to an inflammatory attack on the myelin of peripheral nerves. About 2/3 of patients with Guillain-Barré syndrome have an infection 1-3 weeks before the onset of the symptoms. Guillain-Barré syndrome has rarely been reported after solid organ transplantation (18 cases with three cases after liver transplantation), and these cases are mostly related to a CMV infection. We describe a 64-year-old male patient who developed Guillain-Barré syndrome related to a Campylobacter fetus enteritis, 70 days post liver transplantation. Although the patient received tacrolimus as immunosuppressant agent and is hepatitis C positive, we can conclude that the Campylobacter infection was probably the primary trigger for the development of Guillain-Barré syndrome. As T-cell response is depressed in our patient and cross-reactive antibodies (anti-ganglioside GM-1) exists after Campylobacter infection, we suppose that a humorally mediated attack is responsible for Guillain-Barré syndrome after solid organ transplantation. A review of the literature is performed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Hepato-Gastroenterology, Ghent University Hospital, De Pintelaan 185, 9000, Gent, Belgium
authors.forename: Isabelle
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Colle
authors.forename: Hans
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Van Vlierberghe
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Troisi
authors.forename: Katrien
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: De Ridder
authors.forename: Dominique
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Benoit
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: de Hemptinne
authors.forename: Martine
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: De Vos