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Strep throat is a bacterial infection that strikes about one out of three schoolchildren each year, often causing achy throats and other discomfort. But new research finds that strep infections may heighten involuntary movements and other symptoms associated with neuropsychiatric disorders.
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University of Florida researchers found that shortly after the amount of strep infections in a group
of grade-school children increased, the kids displayed a corresponding rise in involuntary hand
and shoulder movements and disruptive behaviors… symptoms that could have a neurological
cause. The study looked at nearly seven-hundred kids in a Florida public school system over an
eight-month period. Experts think the findings add weight to the idea that strep-triggered
antibodies may interact with brain cells in a small percentage of young patients who develop
neuropsychiatric problems such as a tic disorder, Tourette syndrome and O-C-D, or obsessive-
compulsive disorder.
Dr. Tanya Murphy / UF psychiatrist
"What we found, most interestingly, was that the kids who had repeated strep infections over the
eight months tended to have more movement disorders and more behavior findings."
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U-F researchers say this study is unusual in that it looked for the link between strep and neuropsychiatric symptoms in a general population of students. Most such studies have taken place with children who already have been diagnosed with a psychiatric disorder. Doctors stress that this study should not panic parents whose children are susceptible to strep, but more research needs to be done.
Dr. Tanya Murphy / UF psychiatrist
"Certainly not all these kids who had symptoms would have had any psychiatric disorder, we're not suggesting that at all. But what we were looking for was when children had had a strep infection, did some of these behavior symptoms get more severe or more prevalent."
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At the University of Florida Health Science Center, I'm Mike Garrison
