PUNE: The tally of suspected and confirmed Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS) cases in the Pune region has reached 197 with the detection of five more patients of the rare nerve disorder, health department officials said on Tuesday.

The five patients in Pune comprised two fresh cases and three from previous days, an official from the health department said.

"Of the 197 cases, 172 have been diagnosed with GBS. At least 40 patients are from Pune Municipal Corporation areas, 92 from newly added villages in the PMC, 29 from the Pimpri Chinchwad civic limits, 28 from Pune Rural and eight from other districts. While 104 patients have been discharged, 50 are in ICU and 20 on ventilator support," a health department release said.

The number of deaths suspected to have been caused by GBS in the region stood unchanged at seven, it added.

GBS is a rare condition in which a person's immune system attacks the peripheral nerves, resulting in muscle weakness, loss of sensation in the legs and/or arms, as well as problems swallowing or breathing.