[A case of Guillain-Barré syndrome after the travel in southeast Asia--isolation of Campylobacter jejuni PEN 5 serotype]

A 57-year-old man, while on travel in Malaysia, suffered from diarrhea after he ate fruits. He developed limbs weakness without sensory disturbance after his return to Japan. Serum from the patient had high IgG anti-GM1 antibody titer. Campylobacter jejuni was isolated from his stool. The serotype belonged to PEN 5. The patient received double-filtration plasmapheresis 7 times during from days 6 to 17. Muscle strength began to recover gradually on day 10, and returned to normal 5 months after the onset of neurologic symptoms. Repeated neurophysiologic studies indicated that the axonal degeneration of motor nerves was predominant process. This case suggests that Guillain-Barré syndrome is a complication of traveler's diarrhea.