The Ministry of Health in Gaza announced today, Tuesday, the record of 95 infections of the rare Ghaylan Barre syndrome, including 45 children, a day after the announcement of 3 deaths in the syndrome, and the ministry warned of a disturbing and rapid spread among the Palestinians due to water pollution and malnutrition resulting from the Israeli starvation policy.
Yesterday, Monday, the ministry announced 3 deaths – including two children who were no more than 15 years old – with Gilan Barr’s syndrome due to malnutrition and the failure of attempts to save them due to lack of treatment, warning against a real and possible real disaster. This comes at a time when Gaza hospitals suffer from a severe shortage of medicines and supplies, and a almost complete collapse in their diagnostic and treatment capabilities.
The ministry’s announcement came in a statement by the Director General Mounir Al -Barash, who said, according to the Anatolia Agency, that this syndrome, which is classified as rare diseases, is spreading worrying in the Gaza Strip, especially among children. He stressed that the Gaza Strip recorded 95 injuries to this syndrome within a short period that was not specified, including 45 children, while the normal rate of infection does not exceed one case annually.
Ghilan Barre syndrome – a rare neurological disorder – occurs when the human immune system is accidentally attacked, part of the nerve network that carries signals from the brain and spinal cord to the rest of the body.
Gilan Barre’s syndrome suddenly begins, and its severity may be severe for hours, days or weeks until certain muscles become completely unable to move.
On July 22, the Ministry of Health in Gaza announced the registration of 45 cases of severe paralysis in the sector during the period between June and July, in an unprecedented rise due to the deterioration of environmental, health and malnutrition.
Acute paralysis is a serious medical condition associated with Gilan Barr’s syndrome and other medical conditions, and it is characterized by rapid muscle weakness or paralysis, and affects children mainly according to the World Health Organization, and often affects the muscles responsible for breathing or swallowing.
Some cases of Ghilan Barre syndrome are very mild, and in other cases they cause almost destructive paralysis, which makes the person unable to breathe, and may affect blood pressure or heart rate, and in these cases the disorder is a threat to life.
Gilan Barre’s syndrome can affect any person of any gender or age, and are not contagious or inherited, and the exact cause of it is unknown, but studies indicate a cause of malnutrition, and most cases follow a viral or bacterial infection, and this pushes the immune system to attack the body itself.
Al -Barash attributed the spread of this rare disease in Gaza to water pollution and malnutrition resulting from the Israeli starvation policy. He also counted this spread, which he described as fast to the disease in Gaza, as a dangerous indication of the collapse of the health situation and the exacerbation of the humanitarian catastrophe due to the siege and the prevention of the entry of basic treatments and nutrients.
A disease without treatment and hunger without food
Campylobacter jejuni infection that causes gastritis and intestine (including nausea, vomiting and diarrhea symptoms) is one of the most common risk factors for Gilan Barre syndrome according to the World Health Organization.
People can also develop Gilan Barre syndrome after influenza or other viral infections, including the CMV, Epstein Barr virus, and Zika virus.
In a study published in 2017, the level of vitamin B6 was low in the half of the disease participating in the study, and the level of thiamine was low in all patients.
Ghilan Barre’s syndrome is treated in the hospital, usually the patient remains in the hospital for several weeks, and some patients may need to remain for months, and the main treatment for this syndrome is the immunotherapy that stops the attack of the immune system on the nerves.
On July 24, the Oxfam International Relief Organization warned in a statement that diseases in the Gaza Strip may turn into a deadly disaster, due to hunger and the difficulty of obtaining clean water, lack of shelter and health care.
The Gaza Strip is living one of the worst humanitarian crises in its history, where harsh famine overlap with a mass extermination war launched by Israel since October 7, 2023, and included the genocide war of Gaza killing, starvation, destruction and forced displacement, ignoring all international calls and orders to the International Court of Justice to stop it.
The genocide, with American support, has left more than 210,000 Palestinians among the dead and wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 9,000 missing, in addition to hundreds of thousands of displaced people and the famine that have been tired of many.