The PPN mission is to maintain the industry standard PPN Guidelines for Diagnostics and Therapeutics, foster continuous education and communication within the multi-disciplinary medical community and to sponsor research for developing diagnostic tests, treatment protocols and a cure for PANDAS/PANS within this generation.
HOW WE ARE FULFILLING OUR MISSION
Maintain Industry Standard Guidelines
- Update and maintain PANS/PANDAS Diagnostics and Treatment Flowcharts
- Align recommendations with the Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology consensus position
- Maintain the PPN website to allow clinicians access to the most current medical standard of care for PANS/PANDAS
- Add resources for school staff and considerations for health care professionals in the education of PANS-affected students
Foster Education and Communication
- Collaborate with organizations to bring PANS/PANDAS information to a wider audience and increase understanding. This includes our 2022 Town Hall presented in partnership with the IOCDF
- Discuss current trends and topics related to PANS/PANDAS with leading clinicians and researchers, such as conversations with Stanford’s Dr. Jennifer Frankovich
- Host CME accredited webinars
- Develop resources to aid clinicians in evaluating and managing PANS/PANDAS, including the publication Seeing Your First Child with PANDAS/PANS
- Hold booths and distribute materials at numerous pediatric medical conferences, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Family Physicians, Society of Pediatric Nurses, and more.
- Coordinate free access to articles and papers, such as Dr. Ellen Wald’s A Pediatric Infectious Disease Perspective on PANDAS/PANS
- Distribute hardcopies of resources to the medical community, such as the PANS Research Consortium guidelines as published in the Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology and PPN flowcharts
- Implement educational ads with pediatric organizations, such as the AAP, NAPNAP, and the Pediatric Academic Societies
- Sponsor CME credits at medical conferences
- Publish educational videos and PSAs
- Create and maintain the PPN Practitioner Directory
Sponsor Research
- Granted funding to Chandra Menendez, Ph.D. for her work identifying a pathophysiological mechanism in PANDAS/PANS and differentiating the subtypes of neurologic sequelae associated with Group A Streptococcal infections. LEARN MORE
- Granted funding to support the PANS research program at Stanford’s Immune Behavioral Health Clinic for their work on building a bio-repository for identifying biomarkers in PANS. LEARN MORE
- Granted funding to Dr. Kyle Williams to evaluate the effect of a Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug on PANDAS symptoms. LEARN MORE
- Granted funding to Dr. Madeleine Cunningham to identify one or more biomarkers for PANS/PANDAS (and Sydenham Chorea). LEARN MORE
- Granted funding to Dr. Elizabeth Mellins to investigate a special type of immune cell that travels through the blood to the brain during PANS. LEARN MORE
- Granted funding to Dr. Jennifer Frankovich to support an analysis of cytokines, vascular antigens, blood brain barrier disruption, and metabolic peptides. LEARN MORE
- Granted funding to Dr. Jennifer Frankovich for her work on genetic markers and immunophenotypes associated with PANS. LEARN MORE