The health authorities have started an investigation into the rare incidence of Guillain Barre Syndrome (GBS) in Pulikkal panchayat in the district.
A medical team, led by Deputy District Medical Officer (Deputy DMO) Nuna Marja visited Anthiyoorkunnu, near Pulikkal, on Monday, from where two acute cases of GBS had been reported. District Medical Officer (DMO) V. Ummer Farook said a special study was needed.
Four cases of GBS had been reported from the place in recent days. We cannot call it an outbreak, especially when it was not an infectious disease, Dr. Farook said. Medical authorities said they would seek the help of the Institute for Communicative and Cognitive Neurosciences (ICCONS), Shoranur, for the special study.
We need not panic. We need to look into it more seriously as a number of cases had been reported from one place, Dr. Farook said. Such sporadic GBS reporting had occurred in the district earlier, he said.
Dr. Marja and team met Shareef, 33, and Jameela, 42, both affected by GBS, of Anthiyoorkunnu. Mr. Shareef was almost totally paralysed and Ms. Jameela partially. How they contracted GBS was not known. Anthiyoorkunnu was a hilly area with a large number of granite quarries. The presence of toxic chemicals used in quarrying was suspected to be the villain. Eating of half-cooked poultry could also be a cause, sources said.
We cannot say anything until it is proven in studies, Dr. Farook said. Two others had been shifted to the Medical College Hospital, Kozhikode. Medical authorities said treatment, though expensive, was available for GBS. GBS was a rare disorder in which a person’s immune system damaged their nerve cells, leading to paralysis.
