PURPOSE OF REVIEW Autoimmune disease has long been intertwined with investigations of infectious causes. Antibodies that are formed against an infectious agent can, through the process of molecular mimicry, also recognize healthy cells. When this occurs, the immune system erroneously destroys the healthy cells causing autoimmune disease in addition to appropriately destroying the offending infe...

On May 23 and 24, 2013, the First PANS Consensus Conference was convened at Stanford University, calling together a geographically diverse group of clinicians and researchers from complementary fields of pediatrics: General and developmental pediatrics, infectious diseases, immunology, rheumatology, neurology, and child psychiatry. Participants were academicians with clinical and research inter...

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) is a group of neurodevelopment dysfunctions causing behavioral abnormalities in social, verbal and non-verbal communication. The precise aetiology of ASD is unknown but it is likely to be the outcome of a combination of genetic, neurological, environmental and immunological factors. Streptococcal infection can induce tick disorders and obsessive compulsive disord...

On May 23 and 24, 2013, the First PANS Consensus Conference was convened at Stanford University, calling together a geographically diverse group of clinicians and researchers from complementary fields of pediatrics: General and developmental pediatrics, infectious diseases, immunology, rheumatology, neurology, and child psychiatry. Participants were academicians with clinical and research inter...

OBJECTIVE Reports have suggested that streptococcal infection may be etiologically related to pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders (PANDAS), but there are few good epidemiologic studies to support this theory. Using population-based data from a large West-Coast health maintenance organization, we assessed whether streptococcal infection was associated with increased risk for obsessiv...

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a neuropsychiatric illness characterized by the experience of recurrent, intrusive, and distressing thoughts, images, and urges to action. It was considered a rare disorder, but new data have revealed that it is, in fact, a relatively common illness, particularly in childhood and adolescence. The etiology and pathophysiology of OCD are not well understood....

Case Report A 13-year-old boy was seen for acute onset of exuberant odd movements of the body and arms, associated with vocalizations, and worsening of his previous simple motor tics of the head and neck. He had a family history of simple motor tics (father and maternal uncle) and personal history of repeated throat infections during childhood documented by raised anti-streptolysin-O antibodies...