J Clin Neurol.  2011 Mar;7(1):34-39. 10.3988/jcn.2011.7.1.34.

Visual Evoked Potentials in Guillain-Barre Syndrome

• Gungor L
• Gungor I
• Ozturk HE
• Onar MK

• KMID: 1452571
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3988/jcn.2011.7.1.34

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) is an acute demyelinating polyneuropathy with various clinical features. Optic neuritis occurs in rare cases. In this study we determined the incidence and patterns of visual evoked potential (VEP) abnormality in GBS in association with ophthalmologic findings.
METHODS
Thirty-two patients with a diagnosis of GBS were included in the study. The correlation between pathologic VEPs and categories of neurologic deficit and electrophysiological findings were examined statistically.
RESULTS
The patients ranged in age from 19 to 77 years. Five cases (16%) had abnormal VEPs. All five of these patients exhibited increased P100 latency differences between the two eyes. Other abnormalities were prolonged p100 latency, increased interocular amplitude difference, and distorted p100 configuration. Pathologic signs on ophthalmologic examination were observed in 80% of patients with abnormal VEPs. VEP abnormality was never present in pure axonal forms. There was no significant correlation between pathologic VEP and cerebrospinal fluid protein level or categories of neurologic deficits.
CONCLUSIONS
Involvement of the optic pathways is not a frequent finding in GBS. When present it is always asymmetric and generally accompanied with pathologic findings on ophthalmologic examination. VEPs may be abnormal in different clinical variants of GBS, and especially in demyelinating forms.

Keyword

guillain-Barre syndrome; optic neuritis; visual evoked potentials

MeSH Terms

Axons
Evoked Potentials, Visual
Eye
Guillain-Barre Syndrome
Humans
Incidence
Neurologic Manifestations
Optic Neuritis
Polyneuropathies

Figure

• 

  Fig. 1 Pathologic VEP of a patient with GBS (no. 3). The P100 latency is elongated on the left side, and has a low amplitude (lower trace), while it is normal on the right side (upper trace).

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