Stiff-person syndrome: What we know about Céline Dion’s rare condition

Legendary Canadian singer Céline Dion announced that she had been recently diagnosed with a rare neurological disorder called stiff-person syndrome.

Legendary Canadian singer Céline Dion was recently diagnosed with a rare neurological disorder called stiff-person syndrome (SPS) that led her to reschedule several European tour dates.

In two videos posted on social media on Thursday, Dion expressed that the condition is not allowing her “to sing the way I’m used to.”

According to the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, there are fewer than 5,000 known cases of stiff-person syndrome in the U.S. The symptoms of the disorder can begin at any point in a patient’s life. However, it is most commonly noticed in adulthood.

According to The Stiff Person Syndrome Research Foundation website, this condition is an incurable disorder that causes progressive muscle rigidity and spasms. Those diagnosed with the disorder can be disabled, bedridden or unable to care for themselves.

The cause of this extremely rare disease is still unknown, according to the Yale Medicine website, “but researchers suspect that it may be the result of an autoimmune reaction where the body attacks nerve cells in the central nervous system that control muscle movement.”

The name doesn’t do justice to the pain and life-changing symptoms the syndrome causes, Tara Zier, founder of the Stiff Person Syndrome Research Foundation, told The Canadian Press on Thursday.

“A lot of people have challenges with mobility. Many have assisted devices for mobility, walkers, wheelchairs. Some people are bedridden,” she said.

The Stiff Person Syndrome Research Foundation says, “the most common symptoms of SPS are muscle rigidity, stiffness and spasms in the muscles of the trunk including the back and limbs.”