15 teens (14 girls & 1 boy) who all attend the same high school in Le Roy, N.Y. have all come down with a mystery Tourette’s-like illness. The illness has caused the teens to have facial tics and verbal outbursts that are controllable.
Most of the teens have been diagnosed with conversion disorder — a psychological condition that causes physical symptoms like jerky tics, convulsions and even paralysis.
Environmental activist Erin Brockovich has launched her own investigation into why these teens are suffering from the mystery illness and she believes a chemical spill near the school may have caused it.
[Erin] Brockovich suspects groundwater contamination from a chemical spill from more than 40 years ago may be behind the Tourette-like symptoms.
Twelve of the teens — all of them girls — have been diagnosed with conversion disorder in which the emotional response to a stressful situation can manifest itself as physical symptoms. Three new suspected cases are still being examined. Women are more likely to get conversion disorder than men, and teens are at a higher risk than adults. But some parents want a second opinion.
