This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Ikkyu2 (talk | contribs) at 08:08, 30 August 2005 (improvements). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 08:08, 30 August 2005 by Ikkyu2 (talk | contribs) (improvements)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)First described by Moersch and Woltman at the Mayo Clinic in 1956, stiff person syndrome (SPS) is a rare neurologic disorder of unknown etiology. Those with the illness experience progressive, fluctuating tonic contractions of all muscles, particularly the axial musculature. Inability to walk and paralysis quickly ensues; death usually occurs six to twelve months after diagnosis.
Treatment is mostly palliative with muscle relaxants such as benzodiazepines, which lose their effectiveness as the illness progresses. Because many patients with SPS have circulating antibodies to glutamic acid decarboxylase, an autoimmune genesis to the disease has been postulated and some authorities recommend humane trials of immunosuppressive therapy, plasmapheresis or intravenous immunoglobulin infusion owing to the absence of double-blind, placebo-controlled class A trials on treatment efficacy.
References
Template:Journal reference issue PMID 13350379
 | This medical article is a stub. You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it. |