Recognizing May 2025 As Gbs|Cidp Awareness Month

Floor Speech

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Mr. GARAMENDI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the month of May as GBS|CIDP Awareness Month.

Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS) is an inflammatory disorder of the peripheral nerves outside the brain and spinal cord. GBS is characterized by the rapid onset of numbness, weakness, and often paralysis of the legs, arms, breathing muscles, and face. Paralysis is ascending, meaning that it travels up the limbs from fingers and toes towards the torso. Loss of reflexes, such as the knee jerk, are usually found. Usually, a new case of GBS is admitted to ICU (Intensive Care) to monitor breathing and other body functions until the disease is stabilized. Plasma exchange (a blood ``cleansing'' procedure) and high dose intravenous immune globulins are often helpful to shorten the course of GBS. The acute phase of GBS typically varies in length from a few days to months. Patient care involves the coordinated efforts of a team such as a neurologist, physiatrist (rehabilitation physician), internist, family physician, physical therapist, occupational therapist, social worker, nurse, and psychologist or psychiatrist. Recovery may occur over six months to two years or longer. A particularly frustrating consequence of GBS is long-term recurrences of fatigue and/or exhaustion as well as abnormal sensations including pain and muscle aches.

Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy (CIDP) is a rare disorder of the peripheral nerves characterized by gradually increasing weakness of the legs and, to a lesser extent, the arms. It is the gradual onset as well as the chronic nature of CIDP that differentiates it from GBS. Like GBS, CIDP is caused by damage to the covering of the nerves, called myelin. It can start at any age and in both genders. Weakness occurs over two or more months. Unlike GBS, CIDP is chronic, with symptoms constantly waxing and waning. Left untreated, 30 percent of CIDP patients will progress to wheelchair dependence. Early recognition and treatment can avoid a significant amount of disability. Post-treatment life depends on whether the disease was caught early enough to benefit from treatment options. The gradual onset of CIDP can delay diagnosis by several months or even years, resulting in significant nerve damage that may take several courses of treatment before benefits are seen. The chronic nature of CIDP differentiates long-term care from GBS patients. Adjustments inside the home may need to be made to facilitate a return to normal life.

I continue to champion key priorities of the GBS|CIDP community, including cosponsoring H.R. 1143, the Medicare IVIG Access Enhancement Act, that will facilitate home infusion for the treatment of CIDP and MMN.

I call on my colleagues to join me in recognizing May as GBS|CIDP Awareness Month and in supporting this important legislation by becoming a cosponsor of H.R. 1143 that will help promote therapy adherence, enhance quality of life, and promote positive health outcomes for beneficiaries with CIDP and MMN.

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