William Perry has rare neurological illness
April 22, 2009 by Marijke Durning, RN
Filed under Diseases & Conditions
If you were a football fan back in the late 80s and early 90s, then you’ll likely know who William ‘The Refrigerator’ Perry is. The 6 foot 2 inch tall and 370 pound 
Perry was a larger than life defensive lineman and Superbowl winner has been diagnosed with a rare neurological (nerve) disease called chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP).
CIDP is a very rare illness but it’s often compared with Guillain-Barre syndrome, another rare neurological illness.
Unfortunately, I erred when we first published this article when I described the disease that Perry has as acute and GBS as chronic. Obviously, that didn’t make any sense considering the word “chronic” in the name and I’m sorry about that. I should have reread my own writing a bit more closely.
CIDP is also sometimes called chronic relapsing polyneuropathy, and is often considered to be the chronic counterpart to the acute GBS.
Doctors aren’t sure what causes either disease and prognosis differs from person to person. Although full recovery is often possible, sometimes, patients relapse down the road.
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Image: Newscom
Wrong!!! GBS is acute and rarely reoccurs, while CIDP is chronic. The “C” in CIDP stands for chronic. AIDP is the most common form of GBS. The “A” stands for acute. You might want to look at the website for the GBS/CIDP Foundation International at http://www.gbs-cidp.org.
I have the relapsing remitting form of CIDP so I have knowledge about this topic. You have your facts wrong. CIDP is the chronic form while Guillain-Barre is the acute form. In fact, another name for Guillain-Barre is AIDP or Acute Inflammitory Demylenating Polyneuropathy.
Sorry Barb. I didn’t see your comment before I posted mine.
you’re right – I mixed them up and will correct this. Thank you for pointing that out. I rarely make mistakes like that but mistakes do happen.
Hello to All
I have had CIDP and you can recover from it throught I.V. treatment contact the neurological department at UIC hospital @ Chicago thats were I got my treatment and always throught the help and prays of my family
check it out!
Timothy J. Bonner