Has anyone noticed a decrease in symptoms during a viral illness?

[naturalmama]

My daughter recently has been exhibiting many PANDAS symptoms since a strep infection in April. About a week ago she came down with an upper respiratory infection. During the time that she had it, she had a large decrease in her PANDAS symptoms. She was almost back to her typical self. At first I thought that we were out of the water until another strep infection came along. However, the last few days her symptoms increased again.

 

What I am wondering is, could it be that the antibodies that were attacking her brain were diverted to fight the new infection? I know it is probably way more complicated than that, but I am trying to wrap my brain around this idea. Has anyone else experienced this? It was pure bliss having her back for a week. She was so much calmer and happier.

[rowingmom]

Definately yes. While she had fevers, all of DD11's symptoms (including bartonella pain and fatigue) were decreased, only to return after the fever had resolved. This included motor/vocal ticcing, raging etc. I think this has been discussed a couple of times over the last 2 years that I have been here. Try the forum search engine. I think the consensus is that, generally, many of our children have inadequate fever response to infection.

Edited June 5, 2013 by rowingmom

[naturalmama]

I actually have read of some kids having a decrease during fevers. My daughter has always had many of the symptoms she has now, only the have increased dramatically since her strep infection. In the past when she has had fevers, they have made no difference in her symptoms. This time she had an upper respiratory infection with no fever, yet we saw her symptoms decrease almost to what they were before her strep infection and it lasted nearly a week.

[rowingmom]

This makes it obvious to me that the behaviours resulting from PANDAS/PANS are linked with infection/immune response and should be treatable as such. Too bad many doctors don't understand this.

[Missmom]

Yes, every time ds gets a virus, even a recent sinus infection, his symptoms completely disappeared. This was especially apparent during the fever. Then after he recovers from virus, the symptoms slowly creep back in. I have also wondered why this happens. I remember inquiring about how long do antibodies last. If the child has a strep infection and the body creates antibodies to fight the strep, once that infection is gone and the body does not have an active infection to fight off, then how long would an antibody live before eventually dying off. I think the consensus was about three weeks. So, if antibodies live about three weeks then you would think that they would only continue to attack the brain for three weeks at a time then the child would go into remission until another infection made the body create more new antibodies. The cycle would then start over for another three weeks. Something is causing these children to keep creating new antibodies. Chronic infection??? I don't know..... If so why do symptoms disappear with virus symptoms. If there was a chronic infection the body would still be fighting it as well as a new virus so why would those smptoms disappear. I am really not expecting any of you to know the answer to this, but just expressing my thought patterns. I have given this a lot of thought just have no idea.

[Tattoomom]

YES! I've definitely noticed this...

 

However, my youngest PANDAS child had an autoimmune blood disorder before PANDAS, Autoimmune Neutropenia. She had an antibody attacking the neutrophils in her white blood cells. She eventually outgrew it, but it took years. I don't know where the 3 week cycle mentioned above came from?

[qannie47]

I too have noticed this with my ds. When he was ill with other things like the stomach flu, he would calm down and I would see a different child. My take on what is happening is a little different, and perhaps only specific to my child. If my ds has two things happening at the same time, say a pandas episode and then another infection, it appears that it is just too much for him and he conks out. He is just too tired to exhibit typical symptoms like rage, hyper-activity, meltdowns....but as soon as he gets over the 2nd infection, he returns to the panda's symptoms until the episode passes. I relates this to the fact that while the first infection might be gone, the brain is still inflamed, hence the return to the pandas symptoms...if he stays healthy, the brain eventually becomes un-inflamed, and over weeks, I will see the wax/waning stuff until he is eventually he is back to normal....until the next immune response.....

[Missmom]

The three week cycle above refers to the typical life of an antibody in a healthy person. If a healthy person gets sick then the body creates antibodies to fight off the virus/infection, then once that infection is gone the antibody starts to then weaken and eventually die off because it is no longer needed. I believe this process normally takes about 21 days. Just curious if our children are continuously making more antibodies even after infection is gone???? Or, are there always chronic infections causing the body to produce more.