Friends,

Hans Jorgen, a single father of 3 boys, has recently been diagnosed with Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS).

He is my cousin, who lives in Europe. He was working in Spain and visiting his friend in France when he began having tingling in his extremities, ultimately becoming paralyzed from the neck down. The paralysis may be temporary, and the Dr's feel he will recover over time. He is currently hospitalized in an ICU unit in Nimes, France and his family is in Holland, making visiting and travel difficult.

As many may understand, recovery is best made with family encouragement and being surrounded by those to help with the healing process.

This Go Fund Me is to raise money to transport him from Nimes, France to Zwolle, Netherlands. The only way is through a costly Air Ambulance with a Doctor, Nurse, ICU setup and quick flight to reduce disruption. In addition, his recovery and therapy will require additional funds. Insurance will not cover any of the transportation cost and the added cost of therapy.

Our family hopes to raise enough funds for this effort and we ask that you pass this along. We are hoping to be able to transport him by the end of January.

The donations you provide are not tax deductible, but please know they are for great humanitarian need.

For those who don’t know what Guillain-Barre Syndrome is, here is a quick synopsis:

GBS is a rapid-onset muscle weakness caused by the immune system damaging the peripheral nervous system. Typically, both sides of the body are involved, and the initial symptoms are changes in sensation or pain often in the back along with muscle weakness, beginning in the feet and hands, often spreading to the arms and upper body. The symptoms may develop over hours to a few weeks. During the acute phase, the disorder can be life-threatening, with about 15% of people developing weakness of the breathing muscles and, therefore, requiring mechanical ventilation. Some are affected by changes in the function of the autonomic nervous system, which can lead to dangerous abnormalities in heart rate and blood pressure.

In those with severe weakness, prompt treatment with intravenous immunoglobulins or plasmapheresis, together with supportive care, will lead to good recovery in the majority of people. Recovery may take weeks to years, with about a third having some permanent weakness. Globally, death occurs in approximately 7.5% of those affected. Guillain–Barré syndrome is rare, at one or two cases per 100,000 people every year. Both sexes and all parts of the world have similar rates of disease.

The syndrome is named after the French neurologists Georges Guillain and Jean Alexandre Barré, who, together with French physician André Strohl, described the condition in 1916.