By Emmanuel Nduka
A report by The Economist has suggested that common symptoms which suddenly appear following a streptococcal (strep) infection, such as strep throat or scarlet fever, can trigger psychiatric illness in children – Paediatric Autoimmune-Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptococcus (PANDAS).
This was highlighted in a September 2007 story of seven-year-old Garrett Pohlman. On a certain day he came home from school crying, and absurdly warned his mother that radiation was coming out of the house’s electrical sockets. And that if they went outside, birds would peck them to death, he said.
“These pronouncements were accompanied by odd facial movements. The boy would stick his tongue out and jerk his arms and legs. The day before, Garrett had been a normal boy. Both the paranoia and the tics had come out of the blue, but they proved to be the start of a horrifying mental decline,” The Economist reported.
However, in the end, Garrett was lucky. A scan revealed a bacterial sinus infection. Antibiotics cured the infection, and brought about a striking improvement in his psychiatric symptoms. Garrett had been suffering from PANDAS.
What is PANDAS?
PANDAS is a disorder associated with Streptococcal Infections. A child may be diagnosed with PANDAS when obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), tic disorder, or both suddenly appear following a streptococcal (strep) infection, such as strep throat or scarlet fever.
The symptoms of OCD or tic symptoms suddenly become worse following a strep infection. The symptoms are usually dramatic, happen “overnight and out of the blue,” and can include motor or vocal tics or both and obsessions, compulsions, or both. In addition to these symptoms, children may become moody or irritable, experience anxiety attacks, or show concerns about separating from parents or loved ones.
What causes PANDAS?
Strep bacteria from infections are very ancient organisms that survive in the human host by hiding from the immune system as long as possible. They hide themselves by putting molecules on their cell wall so that they look nearly identical to molecules found on the child’s heart, joints, skin, and brain tissues. This hiding is called “molecular mimicry” and allows the strep bacteria to evade detection for a long period.
