The cases are widely distributed throughout the country, with 20 of the country’s 24 governmental regions (departments) reporting at least one case. Seven departments have reported high numbers—including Lima, at the central coast, to Piura and Lambayeque in the far north, and Cusco, which is southeast of Lima. But no other countries in the Americas report an uptick in GBS cases.
The cause of the outbreak is puzzling—even though this isn’t Peru’s first alarming GBS outbreak. In 2019, the country reported an unprecedented surge of nearly 700 cases between May and July, bringing the total to over 900. Before that, a large GBS outbreak was considered between 30 to 50 cases.
Seems like this might be a sanitation issue? Especially if it’s a repeating issue like they describe.
Researchers concluded that the culprit behind the extremely unusual 2019 outbreak was the intestinal pathogen, Campylobacter jejuni. The gut-dwelling bacteria is well-known as one of the most common causes of food poisoning and diarrheal cases in the world. But, less well-known, it’s also one of the leading triggers for GBS.
Adding this because I think it’s pretty critical for your quotes. So this is something that has been (likely) foodborne in Peru before. But the article implies that only about 2/3 of their identified cases showed signs of the same infection.
They declared their GBS emergency a couple of weeks ago, but Peru is also in the middle of a big Dengue fever epidemic with over 146,000 cases, so maybe they’re related somehow?
Definition for the lazy:
Guillain-Barré (Ghee-YAN Bah-RAY) syndrome (GBS) happens when a person’s own immune system harms their body’s nerves. This harm causes muscle weakness and sometimes paralysis.
Dear Universe, please give us measly humans a break. Sincerely, an exhausted measly human.
My grandfather had GBS in the 80s. Absolutely terrifying. Unfortunately he lost his ability to walk and was forced into an early retirement.
It’s indescribably scary to watch a loved one’s body destroy itself while you and the doctors alike are wondering if this horrible disease will leave any part of them unscathed.
