Famous Canadian singer Celine Dion shocked his fans around the world by announcing this Thursday, December 8th, that he had to suspend his European tour due to for “very rare neurological problems” This affects your vocal abilities.

“I was recently diagnosed with a very rare neurological problem known in English as ‘stiff person syndrome’ (stiff person syndrome),” Dion explained in a video she posted on her social media.

According to information from Center for Genetic and Rare Disease Information (GARD) marked rigid person syndrome “by episodes of stiffness and muscle spasms in the muscles of the trunk and arms and legs, which is often caused by increased sensitivity to noise, touch and in response to shock.”.

Most of the symptoms started between the ages of 30 and 60, and in the singer’s case, this diagnosis prevented her from “use vocal cords”, it says. “Not much is known about this rare disease, but we now know that it is the cause of my muscle spasms.”

People with this syndrome can also adopt abnormal body postures, warns GARD, which belongs to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in the United States — and also points out that the disease affects women more than men.

It’s a rare, rare condition: estimates show it affects around 70 people in the UK and only 330 people in the US.

Céline Dion talks about her health and raises a lot of concerns

The exact cause is still unknown, but it is classed as an autoimmune disease – so called because the immune system mistakenly attacks the body itself – in this regard “Central nervous system, brain and spinal cord”.

The specialty site also details that this diagnosis is often associated with other autoimmune diseases such as diabetes, thyroiditis, vitiligo, and pernicious anemia.

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Stiff person syndrome: the most frequent symptoms

• Abnormal body postures such as hunching over oneself
• Episodes of muscle rigidity and spasms resulting from increased sensitivity to noise, touch, and as a startle response
• Falls due to muscle spasms and stiffness when the person with the disease walks or stands
• brain paralysis
• Epilepsy

Sometimes the spasms it causes can be so severe that joints are dislocated and bones are fractured. Over time, the disease becomes more severe and can paralyze patients to the point that they require walkers or wheelchairs.

Stiff person syndrome treatment and therapy

Although there is no cure, treatment with physical therapy and medications such as diazepam and baclofen can help control symptoms in most patients to manage episodes and reduce stiffness.

In addition to these illnesses, many people with rigid person syndrome also suffer from anxiety and depression, possibly because the symptoms of the syndrome affect their daily activities, “but also because the cause of the syndrome is linked to low levels of neurotransmitters, which help maintain a person’s mood”, he explained.

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