{"id":967,"date":"2023-01-09T22:57:00","date_gmt":"2023-01-09T22:57:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ghnewsbay.com\/?p=967"},"modified":"2023-01-09T22:57:00","modified_gmt":"2023-01-09T22:57:00","slug":"celine-dion-i-have-stiff-person-syndrome-a-one-in-a-million-diagnosis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ghnewsbay.com\/?p=967","title":{"rendered":"Celine Dion: I have stiff-person syndrome, a one-in-a-million diagnosis"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Twit<\/a>\u2018s diagnosis with stiff-person syndrome has brought public attention to the rare neurological disorder, which affects roughly one or two out of every million people.<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Celine Dion<\/a>\u2018s diagnosis with stiff-person syndrome has brought public attention to the rare neurological disorder, which affects roughly one or two out of every million people<\/p>\n

Dion announced Thursday that she had postponed dates for her European tour next year due to the condition.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile we\u2019re still learning about this rare condition, we now know this is what\u2019s been causing all of the spasms that I\u2019ve been having. Unfortunately, these spasms affect every aspect of my daily life, sometimes causing difficulties when I walk and not allowing me to use my vocal cords to sing the way I\u2019m used to,\u201d the singer said in an Instagram video.<\/p>\n

People with stiff-person syndrome often experience rigidity in their torso and limbs, as well as severe muscle spasms that can cause them to fall down. The spasms can occur at random or be triggered by certain stimuli, including loud noises, touch and emotional distress.<\/p>\n

Dr. Richard Nowak, an assistant neurology professor at the Yale School of Medicine, said the condition \u201chas a range of severity, from quite mild \u2014 easily managed with a little bit of medication \u2014 to folks that are quite severe that can be, frankly, quite disabled from it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Stiff-person syndrome overall disrupts the normal pathways of communication between the brain and the muscles.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThere\u2019s a massive firing that\u2019s occurring from the central nervous system, down through the spinal cord, down through the nerves as they plug into the muscles, and it\u2019s causing them to become rigid or go into spasm, which equals the stiffness,\u201d Nowak said.<\/p>\n

In most but not all cases, people with stiff-person syndrome have elevated levels of antibodies that target a particular protein involved in the process of controlling muscle function. Doctors consider these patients to have an autoimmune condition.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn stiff persons, the pathways that are attacked are the brake pathways, so you\u2019ve lost your brakes on your muscles,\u201d said Dr. Simon Helfgott, a rheumatologist at Harvard Medical School. \u201cOnce your muscle starts to contract, it doesn\u2019t have a way to stop itself from contracting.\u201d<\/p>\n

Helfgott estimated that about two-thirds of stiff-person patients have these antibodies, which can be picked up by a blood test. But around 30% don\u2019t, he said, so researchers don\u2019t fully understand what\u2019s driving their illness.<\/p>\n

A small minority of cancer patients may also produce antibodies that attack the nervous system and trigger stiff-person syndrome, Helfgott added.<\/p>\n

Symptoms of the syndrome go beyond the normal muscle cramps that most people experience from time to time, Helfgott said; instead, the muscles tend to lock up. Some of his patients have had difficulty walking or required wheelchairs, he added.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is just such a severe diagnosis to have, especially if you\u2019re an entertainer [on] the world-class type of stage,\u201d Helfgott said. \u201cIt\u2019s going to be very, very challenging to be able to continue.\u201d<\/p>\n

Because many symptoms of stiff-person syndrome overlap with those of Parkinson\u2019s disease, multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia or anxiety, it often takes time to diagnose. Doctors rely on several tools to do that, including MRIs of the brain or spinal cord, blood tests or electromyography tests that use tiny needles to measure a person\u2019s muscle and nerve responses.<\/p>\n

Helfgott said the syndrome is harder to treat than other autoimmune disorders like rheumatoid arthritis or Crohn\u2019s disease, and there is no cure.<\/p>\n

Muscle relaxants or Botox injections can help relieve milder symptoms like spasms, Nowak said. Patients with more severe symptoms are often prescribed intravenous immunoglobulin, an infusion that has been shown to reduce people\u2019s stiffness and sensitivity to noise, touch and stress.<\/p>\n

But the symptoms and their severity levels can vary minute by minute, Helfgott said, and it\u2019s difficult to predict whether a patient\u2019s condition will get worse over time.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn some cases, the condition can level off and stay the way it is. I have people who are like that \u2014 they\u2019re no different now than they were 10 years ago,\u201d he said. \u201cIn others, it is a slow, subtle decline.\u201d<\/p>\n

Source: www.asaaseradio.com<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n

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Twit\u2018s diagnosis with stiff-person syndrome has brought public attention to the rare neurological disorder, which affects roughly one or two out of every million people. Celine Dion\u2018s diagnosis with stiff-person syndrome has brought public attention to the rare neurological disorder, which affects roughly one or two out of every million people Dion announced Thursday that she had postponed dates for her […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-967","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-featured"],"yoast_head":"\nCeline Dion: I have stiff-person syndrome, a one-in-a-million diagnosis - Gh-newsbay<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ghnewsbay.com\/?p=967\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Celine Dion: I have stiff-person syndrome, a one-in-a-million diagnosis - Gh-newsbay\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Twit\u2018s diagnosis with stiff-person syndrome has brought public attention to the rare neurological disorder, which affects roughly one or two out of every million people. 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