What is Stiff person syndrome

Stiff person syndrome (SPS) is a rare neurologic disorder of unclear etiology characterized by progressive rigidity and stiffness. The stiffness primarily affects the truncal muscles and is superimposed by spasms, resulting in postural deformities. Chronic pain, impaired mobility, and lumbar hyperlordosis are common symptoms. The exact mechanism of the condition is unclear.

SPS occurs in about one in a million people and is most commonly found in middle-aged people. A small minority of patients have the paraneoplastic variety of the condition. Variants of the condition, such as stiff-limb syndrome which primarily affects a specific limb, are often seen.

SPS was first described in 1956. Diagnostic criteria were proposed in the 1960s and refined two decades later. In the 1990s and 2000s the roles of antibodies in the condition became more clear. SPS patients generally have GAD antibodies, which seldom occur in the general population. In addition to blood to tests for GAD, electromyography tests can help confirm the condition's presence.

Benzodiazepine-class drugs are the most common treatment; they are used for symptom relief from stiffness. Other common treatments include Baclofen, intravenous immunoglobin and rituxan. There has been limited but encouraging success with stem-cell treatment.

Read more...https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stiff_person_syndrome

The torture of Stiff Person Syndrome
BEN OAKLEY is a young Aussie who unapologetically breaks the law twice a day to fight an illness so fearsome that it almost destroyed him. At 17, he fell victim to a one-­in-­a-­million disease that strikes the nervous system, known as Stiff Person Syndrome. It relentlessly shocks the body with ‘Taser­like’ pain and progressively stiffens the muscles in the spine and legs.

Stiff Person Syndrome: Ben Oakley from Wollongong victim of rare disease http://tipsandsteps.com/shortlink/co