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A Survey of Demographics, Symptom Course, Family History, and Barriers to Treatment in Children with Pediatric Acute-Onset Neuropsychiatric Disorders and Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorder Associated with Streptococcal Infections
SL O’Dor, S Homayoun, OM.Downer, MA Hamel, JS Zagaroli, KA Williams.A Survey of Demographics, Symptom Course, Family History, and Barriers to Treatment in Children with Pediatric Acute-Onset Neuropsychiatric Disorders and Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorder Associated with Streptococcal Infections.Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology.Nov 2022.476-487.http://doi.org/10.1089/cap.2022.0063
  • At onset, OCD was the most common psychiatric symptom 83.06% reported in children, along with a high percentage of medical and psychiatric comorbidities.
  • Most psychiatric comorbidities began or worsened at the onset of PANS/PANDAS symptoms. However, major depressive disorder was the most frequently reported psychiatric disorder to develop after PANS/PANDAS onset (10%).
  • Family members report high frequency of autoimmune and inflammatory conditions, with 29.95% of mothers endorsing one or more autoimmune conditions.
  • Mean caregiver burden is above “burnout” level. Caregivers had mildly elevated levels of depression, anxiety, and stress.
Preexisting Neuropsychiatric Conditions and Associated Risk of Severe COVID-19 Infection and Other Acute Respiratory Infections

Ranger TA, Clift AK, Patone M, et al. Preexisting Neuropsychiatric Conditions and Associated Risk of Severe COVID-19 Infection and Other Acute Respiratory Infections. JAMA Psychiatry. Published online November 09, 2022. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2022.3614

Conclusions and Relevance  In this longitudinal cohort study, UK patients with preexisting neuropsychiatric conditions and treatments were associated with similarly increased risks of severe outcome from COVID-19 infection and SARIs, except for dementia.

Long COVID Syndrome Presenting as Neuropsychiatric Exacerbations in Autism Spectrum Disorder: Insights for Treatment

Jyonouchi, H.; Geng, L.; Rossignol, D.A.; Frye, R.E. Long.COVID Syndrome Presenting as Neuropsychiatric Exacerbations in Autism Spectrum Disorder: Insights for Treatment. J. Pers. Med. 2022, 12,1815. https://doi.org/10.3390/jpm12111815

Neurological and neuropsychiatric symptoms are emerging as major long-term sequalae. In patients with pre-existing behavioral symptoms, such as individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), the emergence of neuropsychiatric symptoms due to long COVID can be difficult to diagnose and manage. Herein, we present three ASD cases who presented with markedly worsening neuropsychiatric symptoms following COVID-19 exposure and subsequent difficulty in managing the post-COVID neuropsychiatric symptoms.

A Light in the Dark for PANDAS & PANS
October 15, 2022
A Light in the Dark for PANDAS & PANS

If you picked up this book, you may feel like your child has been stolen from you, possibly overnight. Watching your child suffer from PANDAS or PANS can be a heart-wrenching experience, but the...

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Category:  Blog, Books
Interdisciplinary Collaboration to Care for Students Diagnosed with PANDAS: An Education and Referral Intervention
Boyd TM, Moyer SM, Lambert D. Interdisciplinary Collaboration to Care for Students Diagnosed with PANDAS: An Education and Referral Intervention. The Journal of School Nursing. 2022;0(0). doi:10.1177/10598405221129553

Implications: This project has implications for school nursing. The results of this project suggest that an interdisciplinary education program assisted school staff to increase their knowledge on PANDAS. An increase in knowledge about PANDAS may assist school staff to identify students who may be exhibiting PANDAS behaviors and better utilize district resources, including school nurses, who can assess and care for this student population. This interdisciplinary collaboration amongst school nurses, counselors, psychologists, and principals enhances the learning environment and helps strengthen the success of students at school (Johnson, 2017; Kocoglu & Emiroglu, 2017; NASN, n.d., 2017; Yoder, 2020). Students with chronic health conditions and concerning symptoms that necessitate primary or specialty health care referrals benefit from school nurse adoption of systematic referral documentation strategies.