A chronic dis-ease that many children are presenting with - a dis-ease that is commonly misdiagnosed as a psychiatric disorder.
PANDAS or PANS can cause brain inflammation by a misdirected immune system response.
In recent months we have had many parents reach out in desperation, trying to understand how their child's persona and capabilities had suddenly changed since coming into contact with a virus.
Children can go from being carefree, creative and fun-loving to isolated and reclusive, riddled with anxieties, OCD tendencies, restrictive eating, bed wetting, attention and behaviour or emotional disorder, tics and even seizures.
Parents often present exhausted, feeling alone due to the lack of support and understanding around this dis-ease. The issue is compounded when parents are unable to find the answers to the questions that need to be answered in order to help their child recover.
The general term now being used is PANS - Paediatric Acute-onset Neuropsychiatric Syndrome is a clinically defined disorder characterised by the sudden onset of obsessive-compulsive symptoms (OCD) or eating restrictions, along with acute behavioural deterioration. The trigger for PANS can be unknown or bacterial, viral, or environmental. The medical community is now more commonly utilising the term "Post Encephalitis" to describe this condition as it refers to the inflamed state of the brain after a particular infection.
The encouraging news is children can recover and continue to live a happy and healthy life with some gentle therapy and support.