Polyneuropathy associated with the novel coronavirus infection COVID-19 (clinical cases)

The SARS-CoV-2 virus in U07.1 COVID-19 affects the lung tissue, blood vessels of the heart, brain and lower extremities. Against the background of a nowel coronavirus infection, cases of damage to the peripheral nervous system (PNS) have become more frequent. The article presents five clinical cases (3 men and 2 women) of the development of polyneuropathies, when patients developed tetraparesis after an average of 14 days, and the distribution of clinical variants resembles those in classical Guillain - Barre syndrome (GBS), confirming the predominance of acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy and sensorimotor syndrome. The typological characteristics of PNS lesion in patients with GBS against the background of U07.1 COVID-19 are described. Attention should be paid to the massive release of cytokines in COVID-19, which contributes to the strengthening of the dysimmune process underlying GBS. The effectiveness of the applied plasmapheresis in complex treatment indicates a postinfectious immune-mediated mechanism of GBS development. The considered variants of PNS lesion in patients with GBS clearly demonstrate the difficulties that arise in the diagnosis of PNS lesion in the conditions of departments for patients with U07.1 COVID-19. The article discusses the necessary and optimal both basic and additional laboratory and instrumental research methods. Unfortunately, not all departments are equipped with modern diagnostic equipment necessary for the timely and earliest diagnosis of neurological complications in patients with U07.1 COVID-19.