Luci Baines Johnson, the youngest daughter of former President Lyndon B. Johnson, was admitted to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota Friday for a suspected case of Guillain-Barré Syndrome.  While instances of Guillain-Barré Syndrome (also known as GBS) are rare, occuring in only 1-2 people per 100,000, the disease can become quite serious, affecting the nervous system and causing paralysis in extreme cases.
What does this mean for the average person?  What contributes to the onset of this potentially devastating disease?  While evidence for a conclusive link is scarce, some researchers believe there is a link between the influenza vaccinations (both the seasonal and H1N1) and the onset of Guillain-Barré Syndrome.  After the first mass-vaccination effort against H1N1 in 1976, hundreds receiving the vaccine came down with and were subsequently diagnosed with GBS, with some of those cases being fatal.  While this past year's H1N1 vaccinations did not show a similar trend, I erred on the side of caution, having been pregnant this past flu season, and opted to not get the vaccination.
Did you feel comfortable getting the vaccination? Â Did you, with or without reservation, give it to your children?
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