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Stiff person syndrome (SPS) affects only about one or two in a million people. Being diagnosed with this very rare condition can leave patients and families with many questions and few answers. The Stiff Person Syndrome Center at Johns Hopkins’ Department of Neurology can offer clarity, effective symptom management and hope for the future.
Drawing together a team of experts in neurology, immunology, ophthalmology, neuromuscular disease and other specialties, the Stiff Person Syndrome Center is dedicated to advancing our understanding of this disease and leading the way toward more effective treatments.
A Patient's Story
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SPS can cause a range of symptoms that vary from individual to individual. At the Stiff Person Syndrome Center, the multidisciplinary team will assess every facet of your life and well-being affected by SPS, and tailor a treatment plan specific to you.
Most important, the team will continue to follow your progress, connecting you with emerging treatments and new knowledge.
New Center for Infusion Therapy
Johns Hopkins’ Neurosciences Consultation and Infusion Center is open and ready to welcome you at Pavilion II at Green Spring Station in Lutherville, Maryland.
The center’s repository of SPS biomarkers and other patient data is among the world’s largest, providing rare insight into mechanisms of disease, criteria for accurate diagnosis and promising therapies.
Through long-term tracking of over 100 patients, the team at the Stiff Person Syndrome Center is gaining a better understanding of how and why this rare disease occurs, and how to treat each individual with the best possible outcomes in mind.
Dr. Scott Newsome Explains Stiff Person Syndrome
Dr. Newsome describes stiff person syndrome, a rare neurological condition that often takes several years to be properly diagnosed.
Management of Stiff Person Syndrome
Dr. Newsome describes the treatment options - both pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic - for people with stiff person syndrome.
Stiff Person Syndrome: Differential Diagnosis
Dr. Newsome describes some of the methods used to properly diagnose stiff person syndrome and distinguish it from other conditions.
Stiff Person Syndrome, Stress and Cancer
Stiff person syndrome is a devasting, painful condition that can be aggravated by stress.
SPS in the News
When Tara Zier developed stiff person syndrome, she and her doctor investigated what she could do to change her fate. They agreed that her best hope would be to see Johns Hopkins neurologist Scott Newsome, founder of the only center in the world for Stiff Person Syndrome. Watch her story as told to WJLA/ABC7 News.
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