PANDAS for adult with Tourette's?

[MichaelTampa]

Hi there, this is my first time on the PANDAS forum. I have been on the Tourette's forum for a few months. I am beginning to explore the possibility of Strep having something to do with my Tourette's. I am 41 years old. If I did get PANDAS as a child, and it went untreated, could it still be a problem for me? Does anyone have any suggestions regarding how to test for it, what type of health care practitioner, etc? And how it might be treated as an adult?

 

Thanks,

 

Michael

[thereishope]

Hi, Michael. Unfortunately, no one really knows what the long term affects are having untreated PANDAS are. In the scheme of things, it is a newer "discovered" disorder. The oldest people I know of that had been diagnosed with PANDAS are now in their late teens/early 20's. There's always a possibilty that you had strep and your parents never knew. Many kids, like mine, do not get the classic symptoms of strep. I know he has strep when the meldowns begin and the extreme behvaiors resurface. Otherwise, there would be no red flag to swab.

 

Do you remember if you had many strep infections as a child? At what age do you remember your Tourette's surfacing? Also, do you notice that your Tourette's worsening when you have a virus, cold, under stress, etc? Finally (and I know it's a lot of questions) what is leading to wonder if you have/had PANDAS?

 

I think I remember reading somewhere that adults could have something similar to PANDAS, but it no longer falls into that catgory after you're passed that "pediatric" age. I'll look into it tonight.

[thereishope]

If you find your Tourette's getting dramatically worse at times, it wouldn't hurt to have a strep test done. It appears that PANDAS can surface in adults too...

http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/full/159/2/320

 

 

Also, in response to what may happen to a child that goes undiagnosed with PANDAS, I found this quote on another website.

 

"... after each attack the recovery of damaged brain tissues may not be as complete as we would hope. Eventually the child may develop a chronic psychiatric disorder."

[MichaelTampa]

Vickie,

 

I do not remember having strep as a child, but I will ask my mother the next time I get a chance to speak with her. I was not diagnosed with Tourette's until last year, at age 40, but the signs and symptoms were there by at least age 10, perhaps as early as age 5. My symptoms are more emotional, with some physical/vocal tics, and extreme sensitivity to fluorescent lights and more recently cell phones and other wireless technologies. I have not noticed the symptoms worsening with virus or cold, but they definitely get much worse under stress. There really is no big reason why I wonder about PANDAS, other than continually searching for reasons and answers and treatments to help.

 

Michael