J21 Tube's video: Five year old boy left paralyzed from the waist down after contracting

Five-year-old boy left paralyzed from the waist down after contracting a rare autoimmune disorder from the FLU In early December, Brysen Mills, five, from Paris, Illinois, contracted the flu and then a stomach bug Just a few weeks later, he complained of leg pain and was soon unable to sit up or walk Doctors at a hospital eventually diagnosed Brysen with Guillain-Barré syndrome It's a rare disorder in which the body's immune system attacks its peripheral nervous system Brysen underwent two weeks of physical and occupational therapy before he was declared well enough to go home About a month after getting over the flu, five-year-old Brysen Mills began complaining of leg pain. His mother, Lesley, didn't think the two incidents were connected and assumed the kindergartner was just suffering from growing pains. But in mid-January, when it got to the point that Brysen could not sit up or walk at all, Lesley rushed him from their home in Paris, Illinois, to his pediatrician's office in Terre Haute, Indiana, reported the Indianapolis Star. When the pediatrician couldn't figure out what was wrong, Brysen was taken by ambulance to Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis. MRIs, X-rays and spinal taps over four days produced no answers, until one neurologist asked if Brysen had been sick a few days before symptoms began. Lesley told the neurologist about the flu and stomach bug Brysen had contracted in early December. That's when he was diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome, a rare disorder often preceded by an infectious illness - and in which the immune system attacks the peripheral nervous system, paralyzing parts of the body. In early December, Brysen Mills, five (left and right, with his dad), from Paris, Illinois, contracted the flu and then a stomach bug. Just a few weeks later, he complained of leg pain and was soon unable to sit up or walk After spending five days at Riley's Hospital for Children in Indiana, doctors diagnosed Brysen with Guillain-Barré syndrome. Pictured: Brysen, right, with Riley Children's physical therapist Kristina Davey The exact cause of Guillain-Barré syndrome is unknown, but it is often preceded by a respiratory infection or a virus like the stomach flu. Dr Deborah Sokol, a pediatric neurologist at Riley Children's, told the Indianapolis Star that the hospital sees about 10 cases a year. 'What we know is that when there's flu season, you can be sure we are going to see more cases of Guillain-Barré,' she told the newspaper.