Guillain Barré syndrome during the pre-icteric phase of acute type B viral hepatitis.

A 54-year-old man presented with the Guillain Barré syndrome (GBS) during the pre-icteric phase of acute type B viral hepatitis. This neurological syndrome has been infrequently described in the clinical course of viral hepatitis but only once previously during the prodromal period. Deposition of circulating immune complexes of the HBsAg have been implicated in the pathogenesis of arthritis, nephritis and polyarteritis associated with type B viral hepatitis. Although the relationship of GBS to type B viral hepatitis is uncertain, a similar immunopathological mechanism may be involved.