What is PANS?

PANS stands for pediatric acute-onset neuropsychiatric syndrome. PANDAS (pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorder associated with streptococcal infections) falls under this umbrella.

It is a disorder mostly affecting children ages 3 to puberty in which antibodies over fire in the wake of an infection, causing them to attack a child's brain by mistake. This causes a whole host of neuropsychiatric symptoms including OCD, tics, anxiety, and more.

This illness is not widely known but can be devastating for families experiencing it.