PANDAS/PANS & Hyperbaric Therapy
Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Dis-order Associated with Streptococcal Infections (PANDAS) and Pediatric Acute-Onset Neuro-psychiatric Syndrome (PANS) are a pair of previously unheard-of conditions that are quickly becoming household names.
Both conditions are autoimmune diseases caused by chronic infections. PANDAS/PANS occurs when a child is exposed to avirus, bacteria or fungi (mold), with the acuteinfection not being fully treated.
While a child who ends up getting recurring strep throat is at high risk of receiving a PANDAS diagnosis, even a single exposure can trigger it.
Strep,influenza,mold,Lyme,Bartonella,along with other infections, are known trig-gers for PANS.
PANDAS/PANS
Symptoms can happen overnight in a child with a recent exposure to an infectious microbe. It is noted that exposure to a toxic substance such as pollution, pesticides, mold,heavy mnetals,etc.can trigger flares.
Commonly, most parents notice a sudden onset of severe obsessive compulsive disorder, which can look like sudden germaphobia or constant body movements (tics). Other symptoms include deterioration of handwriting, anxiety, rage, talk of suicide,bed-wetting,separation anxiety,behavioral and age-regression, sleep disturbances,physical pain, hallucinations, and a chronic fight-or-flight response.
Flares can last upward of weeks in some children, and when they are over, the child typically returns to the same state they were before the flare. They can often remember feeling helpless, angry and uncontrollable during their flare,leading to feelings of guilt and depression.
Treatment for PANDAS and PANS is not a one-size-fits-all. Research is still catching up with parents who have been experiencing this disorder for many years.
Some treatments include long-term antibiotics,herbal regimens,homeopathy,IVIG, Neurofeedback,nutrition,detoxification,chiropractic,behavioral therapy, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, and much more. More often than not, multiple protocols have to be implemented to see a control of flares.
How Hyperbaric Therapy may help:
Hyperbaric Therapy may be a great adjunctive modality for PANDAS/PANS. Firstly,it is an anti-inflammatory modality; the increase of oxygen taken to areas of infection can reduce the inflammation and break up the anaerobic biofilm the infection may be hiding in, releasing triggering microbesinto the bloodstream. This can make treatment protocols (including oxygen) more effective at killing the infection. HBOT can also help a child duing a flare by inducing a relaxation effect, which may help take the child out of a fight-or-flight response. This can result in a reduction of anxiety and rage episodes.
