Streptococcal Infection Linked to OCD and Tourette's

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This came from another list I belong to. Interesting.

Subject: OFF TOPIC: Streptococcal Infection Linked to OCD and Tourette's

Streptococcal Infection Linked to Psychiatric Disorders in

Children

CHICAGO (Reuters Health) Dec 19 - Group A streptococcal

tonsillopharyngitis, if it occurs

repeatedly and is untreated, can lead to the development of obsessive

compulsive disorder

(OCD) and Tourette's syndrome, according to study findings presented

on Tuesday at a major

infectious disease meeting.

OCD and Tourette's have been linked to infection with group A

streptococcus in the past, but

this is the first prospective study to confirm the link and

demonstrate that antibiotic treatment

can resolve the symptoms, study co-author Dr. Pichichero,

from the University of

Rochester Medical Center in New York, said. He presented the findings

at the Interscience

Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy.

Dr. Pichichero and Dr. M. Lynd , from the Elmwood Pediatric

Group in Rochester,

have identified 25 cases of the condition, known as Pediatric onset,

Neuropsychiatric Disorder

(PANDAS). At the meeting, they reported on findings in 12 children.

The children's mean age was 7 years. Parents usually brought the

children for medical attention

after they began exhibiting " severe OCD behavior, " Dr. Pichichero

said. Tests confirmed that

the children had group A streptococcal tonsillopharyngitis, he added.

Once the children received antibiotic treatment, with either

penicillin or a cephalosporin, their

psychiatric symptoms disappeared. When symptoms reappeared in six

children, another course

of antibiotics cleared them up.

Dr. Pichichero believes that such infections might account for a

significant number of OCD and

Tourette's cases in children. He proposes that repeated group A

streptococcal infections could

lead to " kindling " in the brain. Once neural damage occurs, a

permanent case of OCD or

Tourette's syndrome may be the result. For this reason, he noted,

rapid treatment of these

infections is vital.

Drs. Pichichero and Dr. have begun a National Institutes of

Health-funded study to

investigate the relationship between strep A and OCD in 800 children.

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