What to know about stiff-person syndrome after Celine Dion reveals rare disorder - GMA

Céline Dion's nationalist announcement that she has a neurological illness is shining a spotlight connected the uncommon information known arsenic stiff-person syndrome.

In a taped video connection shared to her Facebook and Instagram pages connected Thursday, the iconic singer, 54 said, "Recently, I person been diagnosed with a precise uncommon neurological upset called the stiff-person syndrome, which affects thing similar 1 successful 1 cardinal people."

What is stiff-person syndrome?

Dr. Leah Croll, an adjunct prof of neurology astatine the Lewis Katz School of Medicine astatine Temple University successful Philadelphia, sees and treats patients with neurologic diseases that impact the brain, spinal cord oregon peripheral nerves, including stiff-person syndrome.

Croll agreed with Dion's connection that stiff-person syndrome is not common, calling it an "exceptionally uncommon disease." "It occurs lone successful astir 1 to 2 radical per million," Croll told "Good Morning America."

Who tin get stiff-person syndrome?

Croll explained that radical betwixt the ages of 20 and 50 thin to beryllium diagnosed with stiff-person syndrome, and though rare, it tin look successful children and older adults too.

Overall, women are "two to 3 times" much apt to person stiff-person syndrome than men.

"We deliberation it's due to the fact that this illness whitethorn person an autoimmune component, and successful general, women are higher hazard for autoimmune diseases," Croll said. "But this is theoretical. We're not wholly definite arsenic of yet."

What are the symptoms of stiff-person syndrome?

In her video, Dion revealed immoderate of the symptoms of stiff-person syndrome she has experienced. "While we are inactive learning astir this uncommon condition, we present cognize this is what has been causing each of the spasms I person been having. Unfortunately, these spasms impact each facet of my regular life, sometimes causing difficulties erstwhile I locomotion and not allowing maine to usage my vocal chords to sing the mode I americium utilized to," she said.

Croll said different symptoms that tin bespeak idiosyncratic has stiff-person syndrome see rigidity and stiffness of definite areas of the assemblage causing unsteadiness, slower movements and difficulties walking, thing Dion said she has had successful summation to difficulties singing.

"Typically, patients volition contiguous with stiffness successful the muscles of the trunk, cervix and back, and besides … the shoulders and the hips. In immoderate cases, patients whitethorn person the illness that lone implicates possibly conscionable 1 limb, truthful similar conscionable 1 limb is affected," Croll said.

"The cardinal present is that this stiffness would beryllium truthful profound that it impairs someone's quality to determination normally," Croll added. "And the astir communal grounds for these patients is going to beryllium difficulties with walking."

Croll besides noted that radical with stiff-person symptoms tin besides make different conditions similar anxiousness and phobias arsenic a effect of their carnal symptoms.

What attraction is disposable for stiff-person syndrome?

There are treatments to code the symptoms of stiff-person syndrome disposable but determination is presently nary cure for the chronic and progressive condition.

"Most patients, arsenic a archetypal line, volition beryllium fixed medications that are meant to assistance unbend the muscles. And successful immoderate patients, their doctors whitethorn besides take to prosecute definite therapies that are meant to modulate the immune system," Croll said. "It's important though, to constituent retired that these are therapies that are meant to lessen the severity of symptoms oregon perchance dilatory the progression of symptoms, but we don't person a therapy disposable that specifically targets this disease."

As stiff-person syndrome is rare, determination has not been capable probe and Croll said determination are presently nary large session trials for the disease.

Does stiff-person syndrome impact beingness expectancy?

Doctors bash not presently cognize whether stiff-person syndrome impacts an individual's beingness expectancy, according to Croll, who said immoderate patients person lived a fewer years aft diagnosis portion others person gone connected to unrecorded for decades.

The bottommost line

Croll cautioned that stiff-person syndrome is not commonly seen successful the wide colonisation but advised that individuals acrophobic astir symptoms they're experiencing tin commencement a treatment with their superior attraction supplier who tin besides supply a referral to a neurologist.

"This is simply a precise uncommon information that astir radical should not interest about. But anyone who is experiencing symptoms successful their muscles that are interfering with their quality to determination usually would payment from consultation with a neurologist to enactment that up," Croll said.