One in a Million: A Case Report of Stiff Person Syndrome

Stiff person syndrome (SPS) is a rare autoimmune disease caused by lack of inhibition to excitatory neurotransmitters in the central nervous system (CNS) leading to inappropriate motor unit firing. The pathophysiology is incompletely understood; however, high titers of antiglutamic acid decarboxylas...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Case reports in rheumatology 2022, Vol.2022, p.7741545-5
Main Authors: Yadav, Ruchi, Abrol, Neeraj, Terebelo, Sima
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abdomen
Antibodies
Back pain
Case Report
Case reports
Encephalomyelitis
Laboratories
Magnetic resonance imaging
Muscle strength
Physical therapy
Primary care
Proteins
Range of motion
Rehabilitation
Spasticity
Thyroid gland
Ultrasonic imaging
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Stiff person syndrome (SPS) is a rare autoimmune disease caused by lack of inhibition to excitatory neurotransmitters in the central nervous system (CNS) leading to inappropriate motor unit firing. The pathophysiology is incompletely understood; however, high titers of antiglutamic acid decarboxylase antibody (anti-GAD Ab) are strongly associated with this disease. We present a 50-year-old woman with a history of ongoing gait and balance issues for 5 years with multiple negative workups. She recently had an acute exacerbation which left her bedbound, unable to move her legs or turn from side to side. After a negative workup at an outside hospital, the patient was discharged to a subacute rehabilitation facility. She then presented to our institution due to worsening of her condition and was ultimately diagnosed with SPS which was successfully treated. We review the case presentation and treatment options in the context of a severe disabling disease presentation.
ISSN:2090-6889
2090-6897
DOI:10.1155/2022/7741545