"Audrey was in seventh grade when her bones started breaking: eight in total, over six months. Some of them broke dramatically, like her wrist, which fractured when she fell down a flight of stairs. Others less so: She broke her foot just stepping on it oddly. The broken bones became part of a strange collection of symptoms: Her tendons and ligaments started tearing. She would faint suddenly."
"Doctors were able to diagnose Audrey's fainting spells as part of a condition called POTS -postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome. Your autonomic nervous system regulates heartbeat and blood pressure, but with POTS, the body stops keeping these functions in check, causing symptoms like nausea, dizziness, and extreme fatigue. But for her frequent injuries, swelling, and pain, doctors didn't have answers. It was actually even more frustrating than that: "All of the doctors were saying that there was nothing wrong with me," Audrey said."
Audrey experienced eight bone fractures over six months, with injuries ranging from a dramatic wrist fracture after falling down stairs to a foot fracture from a minor misstep. Tendons and ligaments began tearing, joints swelled, and sudden fainting spells emerged, necessitating crutches and limiting activities. Clinicians identified the fainting as postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), an autonomic disorder causing dizziness, nausea, and fatigue. Persistent injuries, swelling, and pain lacked explanation and were often dismissed as growing pains. A referral to a pediatric rheumatologist at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia resulted in a diagnosis of amplified musculoskeletal pain syndrome (AMPS) and an offered curative treatment.
#amplified-musculoskeletal-pain-syndrome-amps #postural-orthostatic-tachycardia-syndrome-pots #pediatric-chronic-pain #misdiagnosis
Read at Slate Magazine
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