If you or a loved one were diagnosed with Guillain-Barre Syndrome after receiving a vaccine, you may be entitled to compensation from a Guillain-Barre Syndrome lawsuit case or settlement claim.
A team of drug injury lawyers and vaccine injury attorneys is investigating potential vaccine lawsuit cases and settlement claims of individuals who were diagnosed with Guillain-Barre Syndrome after receiving a vaccine.
Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS) is a rare neurological autoimmune disorder (an acute monophasic peripheral neuropathy) in which the body’s immune system attacks the peripheal nervous system (the nerves outside of the brain and spinal cord).
According to the CDC, each year in the U.S., an estimated 3,000 to 6,000 people develop Guillain-Barre Syndrome. Although it is not believed to be common, people have developed Guillain-Barre Syndrome in the days or weeks after getting certain vaccines.
Guillain-Barre Syndrome Lawsuits & Settlements
Guillain-Barre Syndrome lawsuit and settlement cases potentially being investigated include claims of individuals who, after receiving a vaccine, were diagnosed with Guillain-Barre Syndrome, including the following:
- Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS)
- Acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (AIDP)
- Acute motor axonal neuropathy (AMAN)
- Acute motor and sensory neuropathy (AMSAN)
- Fisher Syndrome (FS) or Miller Fisher Syndrome
- Other Guillain-Barre Syndrome lawsuit cases
Individuals who develop Guillain-Barre Syndrome after receiving a vaccine may qualify to receive compensation under the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP).
There are four main types of Guillain-Barre Syndrome. The most common type of Guillain-Barre Syndrome in the U.S. (comprising more than 90 percent of Guillain-Barre Syndrome cases) is acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (AIDP), which has the pathologic and electrodiagnostic features of focal demyelination of motor and sensory peripheral nerves and nerve roots. AIDP typically involves muscle weakness that starts in the lower part of the body and spreads upward.
Another type of Guillain-Barre Syndrome is acute motor axonal neuropathy (AMAN) which involves axonal damage (injury to nerve fibers or axons in brain) that primarily affects motor nerves but lacks features of demyelination (damage to the protective covering or myelin sheath that surrounds nerve fibers). Another type of Guillain-Barre Syndrome that is similiar to AMAN is acute motor and sensory neuropathy (AMSAN), an axonal form of GBS that also affects sensory nerves and roots. AMAN and AMSAN comprise about 3-5% of all Guillain-Barré syndrome cases.
Yet another type of Guillain-Barre Syndrome is Fisher Syndrome (FS) or Miller Fisher Syndrome, which is characterized by ataxia (loss of coordination of voluntary muscle movements), areflexia (absence of reflexes), and ophthalmoplegia (weakness or paralysis of the eye muscles). Fisher Syndrome makes up about 1-5% of all Guillain-Barré syndrome cases.
Vaccine Guillain-Barre Syndrome Claims
Vaccine related Guillain-Barre Syndrome claims potentially being investigated include cases of individuals who suffered from Guillain-Barre Syndrome after getting vaccinated with certain vaccines, including:
- Influena vaccine
- Flu shot vaccine
- Haemophilus influenza type b polysaccharide conjugate vaccines
- Hepatitis A vaccine
- Hepatitis B vaccine
- HPV vaccine
- Gardasil vaccine
- Measles vaccine
- Mumps vaccine
- Meningococcal vaccine
- Pertussis (whooping cough) vaccine
- Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine
- Polio vaccine (IPV)
- Diphtheria vaccine
- Rotavirus vaccine
- Rubella vaccine (German measles)
- Tetanus toxoid vaccine (DTaP, DTP, DT, Td, or TT)
- Chickenpox vaccine (varicella)
- Other vaccine Guillain-Barre Syndrome claims
Guillain-Barre Syndrome Signs and Symptoms
Signs and symptoms of GBS can include the following:
- Weakness in legs
- Weakness in upper body
- Weakness in arms
- Muscle weakness
- Tingling in legs, arms, fingers, toes, ankles or wrists
- Spontaneous sensations (paresthesias)
- Sense of insects crawling under skin (formication)
- Loss of reflexes
- Unsteady walking
- Inability to walk
- Inability to climb stairs
- Coordination problems and unsteadiness
- Difficulty speaking
- Difficulty chewing or swallowing
- Severe pain
- Achy or crampy pain
- Rapid heart rate
- Cardiac arrhythmia
- Abnormal blood pressure
- Difficulty breathing
- Difficulty with eye muscles and vision
- Problems with digestion or bladder control
- Pneumonia
- Bed sores
- High protein level in cerebral spinal fluid
- Paralysis
- Blood clots
- Residual numbness
- Respiratory distress
- Death
- Other Guillain-Barre Syndrome symptoms or complications
Tests and procedures used by doctors to diagnose Guillain-Barre Syndrome can include physical exam, medical history, nerve conduction velocity test (NCV) to measure the nerve’s ability to send a signal, electromyography (EMG), bloodwork, spinal MRI, cerebrospinal fluid analysis, and spinal tap (lumbar puncture), among others.
Guillain-Barre Syndrome symptoms typically start suddenly (within days or weeks) and usually occur on both sides of the body (symmetric symptoms). While most people fully recover from Guillain-Barre Syndrome within a few weeks up to a few years, some people suffering from GBS have permanent nerve damage.
Guillain-Barre Syndrome Treatment
Although there is no known cure for Guillain-Barre Syndrome, treatment for Guillain-Barre Syndrome can include, among other things, therapies to lessen the severity of the illness or shorten recovery time, such as plasma exchange (PE) or plasmapheresis (a procedure to remove the liquid part of the blood or plasma and replace it with other fluids), intravenous immunoglobulin therapy (IVIg) (intravenous injections of immunoglobulinsor proteins, i.e., antibodies), anti-inflammatory steroid hormones (e.g., corticosteroids), hormonal therapy and physical therapy.
If you or a loved one suffered Guillain-Barre Syndrome after being given a vaccine, you may be entitled to recover compensation from a Guillain-Barre Syndrome lawsuit case or settlement claim. Contact a vaccine injury lawyer to request a free case review.
*If you or a loved one are experiencing health issues, side effects or complications after receiving a vaccine, we urge you to promptly consult with your doctor or physician for an evaluation.
**The listing of a company or product is not meant to state or imply that the company acted illegally or improperly or that the product (e.g., vaccine) is unsafe or defective; rather only that an investigation may be, is or was being conducted to determine whether legal rights have been violated.
***The use of any trademarks, tradenames or service marks is solely for product identification and/or informational purposes.
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