Celine Dion54, has canceled its upcoming 2023 European dates Courage world tour and in his tearful explanation, shared on his Instagram page on Thursday, December 8, he revealed that he suffers from a rare and incurable disease called Stiff Person Syndrome. Celine explained that ‘Stiff Person Syndrome’ gave her spasms, which affected her “daily life,” from walking to being able to use her vocal cords to sing. For more on Celine’s terrifying diagnosis, hollywood life spoke EXCLUSIVELY to a world-renowned neurologist Dr. Satonsh Kesari, MD, PhD, of Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica. The top neurologist, who didn’t treat Celine, is also the regional medical director of Providence Clinical Research Institute in Southern California.
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HL: In your opinion, will Celine be able to sing again?
Dr. Kesari: “I think so. There are many treatments that can help and I think just look at them one by one and find out what will help improve the disease and keep it under control… I don’t mean we can get rid of the symptoms 100%, but we can improve them significantly. But there are patients who don’t respond as well, or their recovery progresses slowly, even with treatment. So we need to understand this better and do more research to get a real cure.
HL: Celine talked about it hitting her vocal chords, can you explain why that happened?
Dr. Kesari: “It’s a whole-body disease, so different muscles can be affected to varying degrees in each person, and obviously you would notice subtle changes in your voice if it affected. So even a little bit of inflammation in those muscles could cause a big problem.”
HL: How are you going to handle all of this and how long will it be before you can sing again?
Dr. Kesari: “While we don’t fully understand the cause of stiff person syndrome, there are actually a variety of treatments that can be used that have been shown to be helpful. Let’s start with generic stuff like steroids that suppress the immune system. Another option that can help is plasmapheresis, [similar to a blood transfusion] where it changes and gets rid of the bad immunoglobulins attacking the nerve muscle area by administering intravenous immunoglobulins. It can balance the immune system, so to speak. There are also newer drugs that are used for other autoimmune diseases. [like Lupus and Multiple Sclerosis] which can be used in this ailment. In rare cases, people have also had stem cell transplants, which basically means replacing their immune system, and in those cases patients who have failed at everything else have had positive effects. There are a variety of things that help quickly and some that help slowly over time, it really depends. And sometimes one approach works better for one person than another approach.”
HL: What causes stiff person syndrome?
Dr. Kesari: “Stiff person syndrome is an autoimmune disease, which means that the immune system, for whatever reason, is attacking the person’s body and damaging the neuromuscular junction, the nerve signal connection to the muscle that allows us to move limbs. That’s why patients may experience a variety of symptoms, such as stiffness or weakness or muscle aches and spasms. There may be a genetic predisposition. It also accompanies other autoimmune diseases. A high percentage of patients with stiff person syndrome may have diabetes, such as type one diabetes.
HL: Why is it called stiff person syndrome?
Dr. Kesari: “Patients become stiff and cannot move as smoothly as they otherwise would. In severe untreated cases, especially if your back muscles are involved, your movement is very limited. And like a statue you can’t move, so to speak. It depends on which muscles it affects, but it can make talking, eating, and everything in between difficult. That’s why there’s the statue analogy, because without treatment, if all of your muscles tighten, you’ll move like a statue. In some of the old cases, that’s how it happened and that’s why it’s called stiff person syndrome, because you get totally stiff, in the most severe cases.”
HL: Can a healthy diet and exercise help?
Dr. Kesari: “As you get older, your immune system ages. Regular exercise and healthy eating will maintain a good immune system, so it doesn’t go awry. I have had patients with chronic autoimmune disorders and we do all of our standard treatments which help but still need treatment. And some of them have changed their diet very significantly and have really reduced the incidence of all the problems related to the immune system, including neurological problems. They have adopted a healthy, green, fresh and organic diet. No condoms. Less carbohydrates. Lots of vegetables and fruit.”
HL: What symptoms would Celine likely have faced before seeking medical help and what happens if stiff person syndrome goes untreated?
Dr. Kesari: “The symptoms are a feeling of stiffness, body aches, a feeling of weakness, and sometimes even muscle spasms. There can be very subtle symptoms that can last for months and even years before diagnosis. And other times, it can have a more acute onset, lasting weeks and months, with progressive worsening of symptoms. In these cases, it is usually diagnosed much faster due to the severity and rapidity of the symptoms. In some cases they can be so severe that they limit your ability to work, walk, take care of yourself. Because this stiffness can affect your entire body and can be so severe that you can’t walk or move. In more severe versions of the syndrome, he may not be able to feed himself.”
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Source: Hollywood Life
Ashley Root is an author and celebrity journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a keen eye for all things celebrity, Ashley is always up-to-date on the latest gossip and trends in the world of entertainment.
