Symptoms of Guillain-Barre syndrome include:

• Weakness:
• Starts with leg weakness (bilateral)
• Spreads to the arms
• Arm weakness (bilateral)
• Hand weakness (bilateral)
• Hand numbness (bilateral)
• Arm numbness (bilateral)
• Leg numbness (bilateral)
• Shoulder pain
• Back pain
• Leg pain

Symptoms of worsening Guillain-Barre syndrome include:

• Facial weakness:
• Facial drooping
• Difficulty speaking:
• Slurred speech
• Difficulty breathing
• Weakness of the respiratory muscles:
• Severe cases may require mechanical ventilation

The symptoms typically increase in severity over the first three weeks. After several weeks, symptoms become stable for a period of time, then gradually improve. Most people completely recover within 4-6 months.