In October 2011 , something very strange happened at a eminent school in upstate New York . Over the course of the follow month ,   around 18 multitude at the Le Roy Junior - Senior High School started to experience uncontrollable vellication , cramp , and verbal tics   – much like the symptom of Tourette ’s syndrome . Except for one son and one older woman , all of the affected masses were teenage girl attending the school .

By early 2012 , the arresting story had attain the heap media , with newsworthiness articles appearing everywhere from theNew York Times MagazinetoReuters , as well as a bit of gamy profile TV cable news program appearance such as Good Morning America , The Today Show , CNN , and Dr Drew . Many of the girlfriend wide shared video of their unusual symptoms on Facebook and YouTube , spurring wave of attending on sure corners of societal media .

As perNewsweek , the write up even caught the oddity of Erin Brockovich , the activist show in the 2000 Julia Roberts film , after there was some surmise it could be linked to a 41 - twelvemonth - old chemical release a few geographical mile from the school . Others pick a nearby fracking web site , or suspected it could be the side burden of a inoculation .

Together with the school , the New York State Department of Health , the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation , and the Environmental Protection Agencyswooped into get to the bottom of the case . However , most of their avenues of inquiry speedily close . Reutersreported that the school and the area around it were tested , while other federal agency collected stain sampling , but the investigation by body politic wellness authorities found that environmental element were not a factor . Latent side - effects from drugs or vaccines were also ruled out , as were transmitted factors .

Eventually , Dr Laszlo Mechtler , a brain doctor from the Dent Neurologic Institute who treated most of the girls , came to share their diagnosis : the students were experiencing a cast of conversion disorder and aggregate psychogenic unwellness , also known as mass hysteria . This is a psychological phenomenon in which a radical of people within a certain community or universe subconsciously copy behaviour or pick up similar symptoms , often in response to trauma or a perceive terror .

Some of the girl ’ parent were not happy with this diagnosing , however , as they matt-up it suggested the serious symptom were simply “ in their heads . ” Furthermore , some incriminate the school and wellness authority of a cover - up , maintaining that some kind of environmental factors actuate the miss ’ stipulation .

By summertime , many of the students ’ symptom improved , and most had returned to “ normal sprightliness ” . However , it turned out that one of the girls was diagnosed with Tourette ’s syndrome , a neurological shape characterized by repetitive , involuntary crusade and vocalizations called tics . Dr Mechtler distrust that this one case may have somehow congeal the tone for the collective psychological phenomenon that follow .

“ We notice that the kids who were not in the media were getting near ; the kids who were in the media were still very symptomatic , ” Dr Mechtler said , perReuters .

“ One matter we ’ve learn is how societal media and mainstream media can worsen the symptoms , ” he said . “ The mass hysteria was really fueled by the internal culture medium , societal media - all this upgrade the declension of symptoms by put these multitude at the national head . ”