I'm new to this forum. My 8-year-old son developed a sudden onset tic disorder on March 18th, which has persisted since. He typically has 15-20 motor tics every minute. He also was diagnosed as having Group A Strep via throat culture with heavy growth, although his titer levels came back within the normal range.
We went to see a neurologist due to the fact that the tics were not improving and he had shown a decline in his handwriting/fine motor skills as reported by his teacher at school. In no uncertain terms, the neurologist basically admitted that he didn't believe that PANDAS was a certifiable diagnosis and didn't think there was a connection between Strep A and the symptoms exhibited by children during exacerbations. The neurologist diagnosed him with an abnormal movement disorder and was getting ready to pull out his pad to write a script for a dopamine inhibiter to help address the tics, but I'm not ready to drug him up given that the doctor couldn't even give me a diagnosis. I'm a firm believer that drugs often mask symptoms but don't actually address the problem. Medication certainly has its place, but not in this situation, I don't believe.
My pediatrician was actually very helpful with information about PANDAS. I think that he feels there's a positive connection, but won't come right out and say for sure that he has PANDAS. My feeling is that he's looking for another doctor to confirm his suspicions, but I don't think it would matter how severe OCD/tic symptoms were in addition to every conceivable connection there is....this doctor will never diagnose PANDAS.
So, my question is, where do I go from here? I believe that my son has PANDAS, even though his symptoms aren't as severe as some. I don't want it to get to the point where other kids are teasing him for something he can't control.
