Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Upstate Teen Girls' Bizarre Tics Are "Mass Hysteria"
By
Jen Chung
Published Jan 13, 2012
Modified Jan 13, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Chung
Published Jan 13, 2012
Modified Jan 13, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Last fall, teen girls at LeRoy High School in upstate NY started exhibiting Tourette's-like symptoms. As WKBW reported, students were "shaking and jerking in their necks and heads. One student, who did not want to be identified, said it started when she woke up from a nap and could not speak because the shaking was so severe." Now, it seems that it was an outbreak of "mass hysteria".
According to the Buffalo News, "After months of investigation and a battery of health and environmental tests, however, what school and state health personnel told concerned parents this week is that there is no known environmental or infectious cause for the bizarre condition that debilitated most of the girls. State Department of Health officials declined to publicly diagnose them, citing privacy laws, but at least one local expert in the field of movement disorders stated Thursday that what most of these girls experienced is likely the result of mass hysteria."
Still, parents are not happy with the lack of diagnosis. One father told WHEC, "Well in my opinion we've only just begun. If you haven't found anything then we have to turn some more stones and we need to have another investigation that is not government related," while another parent said, "My frustration is until September 10th of 2011 I had a healthy girl, a girl that was in junior high who loved school had a lot of friends, was very happy high honor roll and then all of a sudden she wakes up from a nap and she's twitching out of control."
Dr. Jonathan Mink, chief of child neurology at the University of Rochester Medical Center and co-chair of the scientific advisory board of the Tourette Syndrome Association, spoke to The Batavian that, based on following coverage of the incident (he hasn't treated any of the teens), it doesn't seem like Tourette's, "It's extremely unlikely that anything in the air, in the water or in the food they've eaten is the cause of tics" and suggested one cause could be stress, "A person gets exposed to those symptoms and they take on those symptoms. It may be that the stresses of everyday life and how these girls deal with stress (that is the cause)."
Tagged
girls
leroy
mass hysteria
teen girls
tourette's
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Police are still investigating bike crash that killed dad of 2 in Central Park
The family is raising money for the wife and two daughters he leaves behind.
By
Brittany Kriegstein
Published Sep 29, 2026 at 9:31 a.m. ET
NYC has a plan to stop homeless people from cycling between hospitals and the streets
The Bridge to Home program, which began last year, will officially expand to Brooklyn on Tuesday.
By
Karen Yi
News
NYC has a plan to stop homeless people from cycling between hospitals and the streets
The Bridge to Home program, which began last year, will officially expand to Brooklyn on Tuesday.
By
Karen Yi
Early Addition: Billy Joel is auctioning off 70 of his motorcycles
By
James Ramsay
Man dragged to death by subway in Brooklyn after getting caught on closing doors
By
Brittany Kriegstein
Upper East Side braces for affordable housing fast track, and backlash from residents
By
David Brand
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .