Are PANDAS a New
"Species" of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder?
THE DISEASE
Pediatrician Susan E.
Swedo of The National Institute of Mental Health was the first to identify the PANDAS
syndrome and gave it it's name. She has been studying the relationship between
Strep and OCD. She has co-authored articles in medical/scientific journals
since 1998-2005 on the subject. The National Institute of Mental Health has
dedicated a page on their site for this disease they are researching and conducting
several studies on.
PANDAS, is an
abbreviation for Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated
with Streptococcal Infections. The term is used to describe a subset of
children who have Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and/or tic disorders such as
Tourette's Syndrome, and in whom symptoms worsen following strep. infections such as
"Strep throat" and Scarlet Fever...etc
According to
the NIH, OCD affects 1% of children in America. However, that number is growing
intensely. Symptoms exacerbate (increase) during the onset of scarlet fever or strep
throat infections.
PANDAS is only
clinically diagnosed. No lab tests are conducted. The criteria include:
Presence of Obsessive-compulsive disorder and/or a
tic disorder
Pediatric onset of symptoms (age 3 years to
puberty)
Episodic course of symptom severity
Association with group A Beta-hemolytic
streptococcal infection (a positive throat culture for strep. or history of Scarlet
Fever.)
Association with neurological abnormalities
(motoric hyperactivity, or adventitious movements, such as choreiform movements)
Doctors
have very little to base their diagnosis on. So, when parents take their children to
the pediatrician, it is often followed by weeks and or months of frustration because while
the pediatrician may deny the possibility of PANDAS, parents are very much convinced that
their children have just that after having done their own research. Then after
agonizing research and doctor consultations, many resort to the NIMH doctors who
specialize in the study of PANDAS.
The Basal Ganglia (a part
of the brain) is affected by PANDAS. Possibly responsible for movement and behavior.
The antibodies interact with the brain to cause tics and/or OCD, instead of
Sydenham Chorea. Though similar to it. researchers at the NIMH are pursuing a
theory that the mechanism is similar to that of Rheumatic Fever, an autoimmune disorder
triggered by strep throat infections. In every bacterial infection, the body
produces antibodies against the invading bacteria, and the antibodies help eliminate the
bacteria from the body. In Rheumatic Fever, the antibodies mistakenly recognize and
"attack" the heart valves, joints, and/or certain parts of the brain. This is
called "molecular mimicry", because proteins on the cell wall of the strep
bacteria are similar in some way to the proteins of the heart valve, joints, or brain.
Because the antibodies set off an immune reaction which damages those tissues, the child
with Rheumatic Fever can get heart disease (especially mitral valve regurgitation),
arthritis, and/or abnormal movements known as Sydenham's Chorea or St. Vitus Dance.
Pandas is classified as O.C.D. associated with strep, and
therefore the only children who qualify for the diagnosis are those who have had recent
strep. In one of Dr. Swedo's studies involving 109 children, 50% met her PANDAS
diagnosis criteria. This meant that the other 50% OCD cases were triggered by
something other than strep throat infections. Unfortunately, her study did not
explain the cause of OCD. What she has been able to confirm is that the OCD in
PANDAS children is an overnight development with evidence of the OCD being caused by strep
infection.
Parents of children
diagnosed with PANDAS find themselves at a loss with their child's recurrence of strep
that seem never ending. Antibiotics are given out by pediatricians like candy
compromising their immune system further. According to extensive study, antibiotics
are only necessary in 15% of the cases in which children in America are given the
prescription. Two out of three children are given antibiotics before the age of one.
Studies find that it is this type of heavy use that contributes to the growing
resistance to antibiotics by "bugs".
The only
"necessary" cause would be for strep throat. This is the typical protocol
for PANDAS children every time strep infections flare. The problem with this is that
the constant use of antibiotics have proven to be dangerous and harmful.
What are antibiotics?
Antibiotics are poisons used to kill. Thus the reason why only licensed
physicians prescribe them. They are used to kill bacteria. However, they don't
only kill harmful bacteria. We have three to four pounds of beneficial bacteria and
yeast residing in our intestines. They vie for nutrients we consume from food and
beverages. Keeping the beneficial bacteria at a good number keeps in check the
yeast. This fragile balance produces nutrients such as B vitamins. Antibiotics
throws off this beneficial balance between the beneficial bacteria and yeast as it kills
the beneficial bacteria. Therefore, causing overgrowth of yeast. If this
problem persists the following consequences is that of dysbiosis. Dysbiosis
is the overbalance of fungus and parasites. Dysbiosis brings on symptoms such as
diarrhea, nausea, abdominal pain and cramps, loose stool and/or constipation, bloating,
gas, food cravings, allergies, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, chronic fatigue
syndrome, and neurological disorders. As the yeast continues to thrive, they use
their tendrils to poke holes in the intestinal wall leading to the leaky gut syndrome.
While some PANDAS
children develop anorexia, this could very easily explain the weight gain with other
PANDAS diagnosed children. Parasitic yeast in the intestinal tract thrive on
carbs such as pasta, white bread, sugar, potatoes, etc. As a result, this is what
individuals with overgrowth yeast problems crave. Carbs. The very type of food
that gets stored as fat by the body before getting burned off. Weight gain by PANDAS
diagnosed children is clearly a possible sign of antibiotic induced damage. The more
harmful carbs the parasitic yeast are fed, the more damage. Health continues to
spiral out of control until the overgrown yeast and fungus are addressed.
PANDAS parents have
observed that when increasing antibiotics for infections their children experience an
increase in symptoms. Thus they have chosen another route and that being the use of
probiotics (basically live positive bacteria beneficial to the intestines). The
rebalancing for their child's intestines is plausibly what helps the symptoms subside
putting their children back in comfort and ease quickly.
Other symptoms of PANDAS diagnosed children are severe
anxiety, depression, puffy cheeks,weight gain, difficulty with math , tics both during day
and nighttime, difficulty sleeping, frequent urination, school refusal.
Parents can tell when their children have strep throat episodes just by their
behavior. (Conservatively speaking, 13% children children and adolescents in America
suffer from anxiety). There are signs of early puberty, incontinence, bedwetting,
encopresis (loss of bowel control), severe anxiety, depression, allergy-like symptoms with
hoarseness, puffy cheeks, violent episodes, urination outside of bathroom, cognitive
lapses (i.e., inability to do simple math or draw a tic-tac-toe board), trouble sleeping,
twitching while he sleeps (extreme), showering all the time (especially after using the
bathroom).
Strep throat has been
found to exacerbate OCD according to the British Journal of Psychiatry. Researchers
tested the blood of 50 children with OCD for the presence of anti-basal ganglia
antibodies, which are produced when antibodies raised in response to a streptococcus
infection react with part of the brain. The immune response is closely linked to
movement disorders, such as Sydenham's chorea, which themselves are linked to OCD.
The team found that 42% of the OCD children had the antibodies, compared to just 5% of the
190-strong control group. It has also been confirmed that in many cases for
PANDAS children, with each strep infection, the exacerbation of OCD intensifies even more.
Part of the torture
of O.C.D. is, as patients describe it, watching as if from the outside as they act out
their obsessions -- knowing that they are being irrational, but not being able to stop.
They describe thoughts crowding their minds, nattering at them incessantly -- anxious
thoughts, sexual thoughts, violent thoughts, sometimes all at the same time. Is the front
door locked? Are there germs on my hands? Am I a murderer if I step on an ant? And they
describe increasingly elaborate rituals to assuage those thoughts -- checking and
rechecking door locks, washing and rewashing hands, walking carefully, slowly and in
bizarre patterns to avoid stepping on anything. They feel driven to do things they know
make no sense. -New York Times Mary,
22, 2005, Can You Catch Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder? By LISA BELKIN
Often times PANDAS
diagnosed children suffer from tonsillitis. The strep infections overwhelm their
tonsils. This results in so much pain in the throat. Tonsils can get severely
swollen and even get as hard and big as golf balls. This makes it difficult for the
children to sleep at night. When the situation gets this bad, parents opt to get the
tonsils removed and the children are able to sleep at night. The downfall to this is
that tonsils are the main immune fighting "machine" for the upper respiratory
tract. During every upper respiratory tract infection the tonsils go to work
combating the infection. They help to filter out bacteria and other microorganisms
to prevent infection in the body. The strep infections with these PANDAS
children are so severe and damaging.
A Possible
Link to Vaccination
Strep throat, OCD
and tonsillitis populate the VAERS (Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System compiled by
the CDC and the FDA) database. What better indication and or confirmation
does one need to see casual link? Below are some of the listed comments from the
database copied and pasted word for word. No alterations for better understanding
needed. Unfortunately, there is not enough awareness and study discussing how
vaccinations may contribute to OCD.
Comments
Vaccines
CDC reports: 2
yo child immunized 19FEB90, 26FEB90 developed fever 103 & convuls. Dx Strep throat @
E>R>
DTP
CDC Reports: 6 yo child recvd DTP/OPV 14Feb90, 16Feb90 had some
pain & adenopathy @ site, 18FEb90 developed rash on face, neck, stomach & back
lasting 4 days & swollen eyes.
Throat culture positive for Strep; Strep rash per ER MD
DTP
OPV
Seizure,
104F-sent to hospital; given ibuprofen and sent home. MD presribed Zithromax for ear
infection. Took to regular doctor on the following morning. Had strep throat. Mother had
same reaction-hospital for 3 days
VARICELLA
MMR
Strep
08/03/2003, diagnosis on 07/23/2003
DTaP MMR
IPV
Strep Throat
FLU and PPV
(pneumococcal)
tonsillitis
DTaP
MMR
A physician
reported that a male pt received an injection of Prevnar on an unspecified date and
experienced drug ineffective, tonsillitis, strep infection, and decreased immune
deficiency. The pt's concurrent illness includes developmental delay with a past history
of recurrent infections. The reporter indicated that the child has an increased pain
threshold. The reporter stated that the child has a history of "multiple
problems." The pt received a dose on an unspecified date. Indication for Prevnar was
imm
PNC
A study
concluded that PANDAS may arise from streptococcal infections. The Prevnar vaccine
is made up of 7 serotypes of streptococcal pneumoniae. Those seven serotypes are
then joined with the diphtheria. The Corynebacterium diphtheria strain used is
responsible for upper respiratory infections. Same strain is used in manufacturing
DTP and diphtheria/tetanus vaccines. Is the combination of the seven bacteria
serotypes with the diphtheria mutating into streptococcal infections responsible for strep
throat infections? A serious possibility. Scientists have a
regular tendency to complicate labeling and diagnosis. I think this is what we are
seeing with "PANDAS". What is so hard about encouraging the mass injection
of combined bacterium and witnessing the onset of upper respiratory infections accompanied
with numerous consequential symptoms? From what I see, no complicating rocket
science is necessary.
