Adulthood Outcome of Tic and Obsessive-Compulsive Symptom Severity in Children with Tourette Syndrome

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Adulthood Outcome of Tic and Obsessive-Compulsive Symptom Severity in Children with Tourette Syndrome ARTICLE Adulthood Outcome of Tic and Obsessive-Compulsive Symptom Severity in Children With Tourette Syndrome Michael H. Bloch, BA; Bradley S. Peterson, MD; Lawrence Scahill, MSN, PhD; Jessica Otka, BA; Lily Katsovich, MS; Heping Zhang, PhD; James F. Leckman, MD Background: Tourette syndrome (TS) is a childhood- Main Outcome Measures: Expert-rated tic and OCD onset neuropsychiatric disorder that is characterized by symptom severity at follow-up interview an average of both motor and phonic tics. One half to two thirds of chil- 7.6 years later (range, 3.8-12.8 years). dren with TS experience a reduction or complete reso- lution of tic symptoms during adolescence. At least one Results: Eighty-five percent of subjects reported a re- third of adults with TS have comorbid obsessive- duction in tic symptoms during adolescence. Only in- compulsive disorder (OCD). creased tic severity in childhood was associated with increased tic severity at follow-up. The average age at worst- Objectives: To clarify the clinical course of tic and OCD ever tic severity was 10.6 years. Forty-one percent of pa- symptoms in children with TS and determine if baseline tients with TS reported at one time experiencing at least clinical measurements in childhood are associated with moderate OCD symptoms. Worst-ever OCD symptoms future symptom severity in late adolescence and early occurred approximately 2 years later than worst-ever tic adulthood. symptoms. Increased childhood IQ was strongly associ- ated with increased OCD severity at follow-up. Design: Prospective cohort study. Conclusion: Obsessive-compulsive disorder symp- Setting: Yale Child Study Center tic and OCD outpa- tient specialty clinic. toms in children with TS became more severe at a later age and were more likely to persist than tic symptoms. Participants: Forty-six children with TS who received a structured clinical evaluation prior to age 14 years. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2006;160:65-69 OURETTE SYNDROME (TS) IS TS frequently co-occurs with obsessive- a childhood-onset neuro- compulsive disorder (OCD), attention- psychiatric disorder that is deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and characterized by both mo- other behavioral, emotional, and learn- tor and phonic tics. In TS, ing disorders. In 1 study, 65% of patients Ttics typically begin at age 5 or 6 years and with TS in late adolescence regarded their reach their peak severity between 10 and behavioral problems (including ADHD and Author Affiliations: Yale Child 12 years of age.1-3 One half to two thirds OCD) and learning difficulties to have had Study Center, the General of children with TS experience a substan- an equal or greater impact on function- Clinical Research Center, and 1 the Departments of Pediatrics tial decrease or complete remission of tics ing than did the tics themselves. 2,3 and Epidemiology and Public by the end of adolescence. However, the Health, Yale University School continuation of tics into adulthood can For editorial comment of Medicine, New Haven, Conn have serious consequences that may in- (Mr Bloch; Drs Scahill, Zhang, clude self-injurious tics and those that see page 103 and Leckman; and Mss Otka cause social unease, such as coprolalia.1 and Katsovich); Division of Currently, no clinical measures are known We conducted this study to clarify the Child and Adolescent to predict reliably which children will con- clinical course of tic symptoms and to ex- Psychiatry and the Magnetic tinue to express tics in adulthood. tend our knowledge of the course of OCD Resonance Imaging Unit, New symptoms in patients with TS. We also York State Psychiatric Institute Motor and vocal tics, the most promi- and Columbia University nent feature and diagnostic sine qua non wanted to assess prospectively whether base- College of Physicians and of TS, are often neither the first nor the line clinical measurements in children with Surgeons, New York most impairing symptoms that patients TS were associated with adult outcome with (Dr Peterson). with TS endure. In clinical populations, regard to severity of tic and OCD symp- (REPRINTED) ARCH PEDIATR ADOLESC MED/ VOL 160, JAN 2006 WWW.ARCHPEDIATRICS.COM 65 ©2006 American Medical Association. All rights reserved. Downloaded From: https://jamanetwork.com/ on 09/29/2021 Tourette and Other Behavioral Syndromes, which includes the Table. Demographic Comparison Between Participating Kiddie-Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia Epi- and Nonparticipating Patients With Tourette Syndrome* demiologic Present and Lifetime Version for diagnosis in chil- dren and more detailed sections on TS and OCD, was used to P screen for comorbid psychiatric illnesses.11-13 Neuropsychiatric Characteristic Participants Nonparticipants Value diagnoses were established using a best-estimate consensus pro- Sample size 46 18 cedure involving 2 child psychiatrists (B.S.P. and J.F.L.), who 14 Age, y, mean ± SD 11.42 ± 1.59 10.91 ± 0.97 .21 reviewed all available clinical and research data. Men, No. (%) 36 (78) 13 (72) .61 Right handedness, No. (%) 38 (83) 16 (89) .53 INTERVIEW PROCEDURE AT TIME 2 IQ, mean ± SD 111 ± 14.7 111 ± 11.3 Ͼ.99 OCD, No. (%) 17 (37) 3 (17) .12 ADHD, No. (%) 9 (20) 6 (33) .28 Assessments included current and worst-ever YGTSS and CY- YGTSS7 score, mean ± SD 19.9 ± 8.45 21.5 ± 6.45 .47 BOCS ratings. Screening for any comorbid psychiatric condi- CY-BOCS8 score, mean ± SD 2.11 ± 3.30 2.56 ± 5.29 .65 tions was conducted with the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders.15 Additional assessments included a Abbreviations: ADHD, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder; thorough medication history, specific inquiry about ADHD CY-BOCS, Children’s Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale; symptoms, and ages at worst-ever tic and OCD symptoms. Over- OCD, obsessive-compulsive disorder; YGTSS, Yale Global Tic Severity Scale. all psychosocial functioning was rated using the Global As- *There were no significant differences (PϽ.05) between any of the sessment Scale after the follow-up interview.16 Eight clinical variables examined between participating and nonparticipating subjects evaluations relied solely on information provided by a parent ␹2 using or t tests. who lived in the same home as the research subject. toms. Our a priori hypotheses were that (1) increased se- DATA ANALYSIS verity of tic symptoms and (2) a diagnosis of ADHD in chil- All statistical procedures were performed using SPSS version dren with TS would be associated with increased tic severity 12.0.17 Histograms were generated to examine the distribution at follow-up and that (3) increased severity of OCD symp- of YGTSS and CY-BOCS scores at time 2. Because of the large toms and (4) a higher IQ in childhood would be associ- number of subjects with no current tic or OCD symptoms at time ated with increased OCD symptom severity at follow-up. 2 (YGTSS and CY-BOCS scores=0), YGTSS and CY-BOCS scores were not normally distributed. To avoid the nonnormality prob- METHODS lem for these outcome scales, we transformed them into ordinal groupings prior to hypothesis analysis to maintain gradations in symptom severity while also maintaining ordinal groupings of SUBJECTS roughly equal subject number. The ordinal groupings for YGTSS score (range, 0-50) at follow-up used in these analyses were 0 The 46 subjects included in this study were previously evalu- (n=15), 1 through 9 (n=11), 10 through 19 (n=10), and 20 or ated at the Yale Child Study Center Tic Disorder Clinic (New higher (n=10). These groupings roughly correspond to ab- Haven, Conn) and had previously participated in magnetic reso- sence of tics (YGTSS score, 0), minimal tic symptoms (YGTSS 4-6 nance imaging studies in childhood. Eligible subjects (1) had score, 1-9), mild tic symptoms (YGTSS score, 11-19), and mod- a previous diagnosis of TS, (2) underwent magnetic reso- erate to severe tic symptoms (YGTSS score, Ն20). For CY- nance imaging and a detailed evaluation prior to 14 years of BOCS score at follow-up (range, 0-40), groupings for ordinal lo- age (time 1), and (3) were older than 16 years at follow-up (time gistic regression were 0 (n=24), 1 through 9 (n=10), and greater 2). Exclusionary criteria in these earlier studies included a his- than or equal to 10 (n=9). These groupings roughly corre- tory of seizure, head trauma with loss of consciousness, ongo- spond to absence of OCD symptoms (CY-BOCS score, 0), sub- ing or past substance abuse, or an IQ lower than 80. Parental clinical OCD symptoms (CY-BOCS score, 1-9), and OCD symp- written informed consent and subject assent were obtained at toms of clinical significance (CY-BOCS score, Ն10). both time 1 and time 2. Compensation was provided for par- The ordinal logistic regression module of SPSS 12.0 with a ticipation at both points under the guidelines of the Human logit link was used for statistical analyses. This statistical pack- Investigations Committee at Yale University, New Haven. age relies on the proportional odds model for ordinal logistic From an eligible sample of 64 subjects evaluated at time 1, regression. Ordinal groupings for YGTSS and CY-BOCS rat- 46 subjects elected to participate. Reasons for nonparticipation ings were used as the dependent variable in the analyses. For a included subject refusal to participate in follow-up interview priori hypothesis testing, YGTSS, CY-BOCS, and IQ scores or (n=14) or inability to locate subjects (n=4). Demographic mea- ADHD diagnosis at time 1 were entered as the independent vari- surements did not differ statistically significantly between par- ables. Each of these independent variables was then entered into ticipating and nonparticipating subjects as assessed during ini- individual ordinal logistic regression models. Additionally, for tial evaluation at time 1 (Table).
Recommended publications
  • Tourette Syndrome: Training for Law Enforcement
    Tourette Syndrome: Training for Law Enforcement 42-40 Bell Blvd., Suite 205, Bayside, NY 11361 tourette.org 888-4TOURET Understanding Tourette Syndrome & Tic Disorders: The Basics Tourette Syndrome (TS) is a type of Tic Disorder. Tics are involuntary, sudden, rapid repetitive movements and vocalizations. Tics are the defining feature of a group of childhood-onset, neurodevelopmental conditions. There are two types of tics— motor (movements) and vocal (sounds). As seen in the chart below, tics range from head shaking to throat clearing. You may see someone doing more than one tic at a time. It is important to note that you might encounter someone uttering obscenities, racial statements, or socially inappropriate phrases (corprolalia). However, only 1 in 10 individuals present this type of tic. It is also possible that you might encounter someone acting out obscene gestures (copropraxia). These tics, like all others, are involuntary. Types of Tics TYPES SIMPLE COMPLEX Motor Tics SUDDEN, BRIEF MOVEMENTS: MOVEMENTS ARE OFTEN Some Examples: Eye blinking, head shaking, face SLOWER AND MAY SEEM grimacing, shoulder shrugging, PURPOSEFUL IN APPEARANCE: abdominal tensing, or arm jerking Touching, tapping, hopping, squatting, skipping, jumping, or copropraxia (obscene gestures) Vocal Tics SUDDEN SOUNDS OR NOISES: WORDS OR PHRASES THAT Some Examples: Sniffing, coughing, spitting, OFTEN OCCUR OUT OF grunting, throat clearing, CONTEXT: Syllables, words or snorting, animal noises, phrases (“shut up”, “stop that”), squeaking, or shouting coprolalia (uttering of obscen- ities), palilalia (repeating own words), echolalia (repeating others’ words) Tic Challenges in Social Situations Tics can increase in high stress situations, such as being stopped by law enforcement.
    [Show full text]
  • Tic Disorders
    No. 35 May 2012 Tic Disorders A tic is a problem in which a part of the body moves repeatedly, quickly, suddenly and uncontrollably. Tics can occur in any body part, such as the face, shoulders, hands or legs. They can be stopped voluntarily for brief periods. Sounds that are made involuntarily (such as throat clearing, sniffing) are called vocal tics. Most tics are mild and hardly noticeable. However, in some cases they are frequent and severe, and can affect many areas of a child's life. The most common tic disorder is called "transient tic disorder" and may affect up to 10 percent of children during the early school years. Teachers or others may notice the tics and wonder if the child is under stress or "nervous." Transient tics go away by themselves. Some may get worse with anxiety, tiredness, and some medications. Some tics do not go away. Tics which last one year or more are called "chronic tics." Chronic tics affect less than one percent of children and may be related to a special, more unusual tic disorder called Tourette's Disorder. Children with Tourette's Disorder have both body and vocal tics (throat clearing). Some tics disappear by early adulthood, and some continue. Children with Tourette's Disorder may also have problems with attention, and learning disabilities. They may act impulsively, and/or develop obsessions and compulsions. Sometimes people with Tourette's Disorder may blurt out obscene words, insult others, or make obscene gestures or movements. They cannot control these sounds and movements and should not be blamed for them.
    [Show full text]
  • Tourette's Syndrome
    Tourette’s Syndrome CHRISTOPHER KENNEY, MD; SHENG-HAN KUO, MD; and JOOHI JIMENEZ-SHAHED, MD Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas Tourette’s syndrome is a movement disorder most commonly seen in school-age children. The incidence peaks around preadolescence with one half of cases resolving in early adult- hood. Tourette’s syndrome is the most common cause of tics, which are involuntary or semi- voluntary, sudden, brief, intermittent, repetitive movements (motor tics) or sounds (phonic tics). It is often associated with psychiatric comorbidities, mainly attention-deficit/hyperac- tivity disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Given its diverse presentation, Tourette’s syndrome can mimic many hyperkinetic disorders, making the diagnosis challenging at times. The etiology of this syndrome is thought to be related to basal ganglia dysfunction. Treatment can be behavioral, pharmacologic, or surgical, and is dictated by the most incapacitating symp- toms. Alpha2-adrenergic agonists are the first line of pharmacologic therapy, but dopamine- receptor–blocking drugs are required for multiple, complex tics. Dopamine-receptor–blocking drugs are associated with potential side effects including sedation, weight gain, acute dystonic reactions, and tardive dyskinesia. Appropriate diagnosis and treatment can substantially improve quality of life and psychosocial functioning in affected children. (Am Fam Physician. 2008;77(5):651-658, 659-660. Copyright © 2008 American Academy of Family Physicians.) ▲ Patient information: n 1885, Georges Gilles de la Tourette normal context or in inappropriate situa- A handout on Tourette’s described the major clinical features tions, thus calling attention to the person syndrome, written by the authors of this article, is of the syndrome that now carries his because of their exaggerated, forceful, and provided on p.
    [Show full text]
  • The ICD-10 Classification of Mental and Behavioural Disorders : Clinical Descriptions and Diagnostic Guidelines
    ICD-10 ThelCD-10 Classification of Mental and Behavioural Disorders Clinical descriptions and diagnostic guidelines | World Health Organization I Geneva I 1992 Reprinted 1993, 1994, 1995, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004 WHO Library Cataloguing in Publication Data The ICD-10 classification of mental and behavioural disorders : clinical descriptions and diagnostic guidelines. 1.Mental disorders — classification 2.Mental disorders — diagnosis ISBN 92 4 154422 8 (NLM Classification: WM 15) © World Health Organization 1992 All rights reserved. Publications of the World Health Organization can be obtained from Marketing and Dissemination, World Health Organization, 20 Avenue Appia, 1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland (tel: +41 22 791 2476; fax: +41 22 791 4857; email: [email protected]). Requests for permission to reproduce or translate WHO publications — whether for sale or for noncommercial distribution — should be addressed to Publications, at the above address (fax: +41 22 791 4806; email: [email protected]). The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the World Health Organization concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Dotted lines on maps represent approximate border lines for which there may not yet be full agreement. The mention of specific companies or of certain manufacturers' products does not imply that they are endorsed or recommended by the World Health Organization in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. Errors and omissions excepted, the names of proprietary products are distinguished by initial capital letters.
    [Show full text]
  • Sensory Phenomena Related to Tics, Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms
    Available online at www.sciencedirect.com ScienceDirect Comprehensive Psychiatry 62 (2015) 141–146 www.elsevier.com/locate/comppsych Sensory phenomena related to tics, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, and global functioning in Tourette syndrome ⁎ Yukiko Kanoa, , Natsumi Matsudab, Maiko Nonakab, Miyuki Fujioc, Hitoshi Kuwabarad, Toshiaki Konoe aDepartment of Child Neuropsychiatry, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bukyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8655, Japan bDepartment of Child Psychiatry, The University of Tokyo Hospital, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bukyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8655, Japan cCourse of Clinical Psychology, Graduate School of Education, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bukyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan dDisability Services Office, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bukyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan eDepartment of Forensic Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, 4-1-1 Ogawahigashi-cho, Kodaira-shi, Tokyo 187-8551, Japan Abstract Objectives: Sensory phenomena, including premonitory urges, are experienced by patients with Tourette syndrome (TS) and obsessive- compulsive disorder (OCD). The goal of the present study was to investigate such phenomena related to tics, obsessive-compulsive symptoms (OCS), and global functioning in Japanese patients with TS. Methods: Forty-one patients with TS were assessed using the University of São Paulo Sensory Phenomena Scale (USP-SPS), the Premonitory Urge for Tics Scale (PUTS), the Yale Global Tic Severity Scale (YGTSS), the Dimensional Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (DY-BOCS), and the Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) Scale. Results: USP-SPS and PUTS total scores were significantly correlated with YGTSS total and vocal tics scores.
    [Show full text]
  • Practical Child Psychiatry: the Clinician's Guide
    Practical Child Psychiatry: The Clinician's Guide Bryan Lask Sharon Taylor Kenneth P Nunn BMJ PUBLISHING GROUP Practical Child Psychiatry: The clinician’s guide This Page Intentionally Left Blank This Page Intentionally Left Blank Practical Child Psychiatry: The clinician’s guide Bryan Lask Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, St George's Hospital Medical School, University of London, London, UK and Huntercombe Hospital, Maidenhead, UK Sharon Taylor Specialist Registrar in Child Psychiatry, Academic Unit of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, St Mary’s Campus, London, UK Kenneth P Nunn Professor of Child Psychiatry, University of Newcastle and Director of Inpatient Child Psychiatry, John Hunter Hospital, Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia © BMJ Publishing Group 2003 BMJ Books is an imprint of the BMJ Publishing Group All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording and/or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publishers. First published in 2003 by BMJ Books, BMA House, Tavistock Square, London WC1H 9JR www.bmjbooks.com British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN 0 7279 1593 2 Typeset by SIVA Math Setters, Chennai, India Printed and bound in Spain by Graphycems, Navarra Contents Preface vii Foreword ix Acknowledgements xiii Section I: A bird’s eye view 1 1. Background 3 2. Assessment 14 Section II: The clinical picture 19 3. Fears and anxieties 21 4. Post-traumatic stress disorder 34 5.
    [Show full text]
  • Neurological Features of Gilles De La Tourette's Syndrome
    J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry: first published as 10.1136/jnnp.36.1.1 on 1 February 1973. Downloaded from Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry, 1973, 36, 1-9 Neurological features of Gilles de la Tourette's syndrome RICHARD D. SWEET, GAIL E. SOLOMON, HENRIETTE WAYNE, ELAINE SHAPIRO, AND ARTHUR K. SHAPIRO From the Departments of Neurology and Psychiatry, Cornell University Medical College, New York, New York 10021, U.S.A. SUMMARY Clinical neurological examinations of 22 patients with Gilles de la Tourette's syndrome and written reports of examinations of seven other patients are reported. Half the personally exam- ined patients had minor motor asymmetries in addition to the typical motor and vocal tics found in all the patients. Thirty-six per cent of patients were left handed or ambidextrous. Electroencephalo- grams performed on 17 of the 22 patients showed non-specific abnormalities in 12 of them. These findings suggest that a neurological disorder underlies Tourette's syndrome, but they do not clarify its nature. Protected by copyright. Tics may be defined as brief purposeless move- (Yeh, McNay, and Goldberg, 1969). It has been ments of a body part which occur at random suggested that a dopamine excess may underlie intervals and cannot be suppressed for long Tourette's syndrome (Snyder, Taylor, Coyle, and periods oftime. Wilson (1927) believed they were Meyerhoff, 1970), but the actual anatomical or psychogenic in origin, while others have empha- pathophysiological abnormality which might sized developmental (Balthasar, 1957) or in- cause Tourette's syndrome and be controlled by flammatory disorders (Creak and Guttman, haloperidol is still unknown.
    [Show full text]
  • Tourette Syndrome and Tic Disorders
    Tourette Syndrome and Tic Disorders Presentation by Kiran Singh, PGY-3 UCI/CHOC Pediatrics Residency Program Case 1: Leslie ● 8 year old previously healthy female. At age 6, she started developing involuntary blinking and head jerking. These movements will sometimes recede for a couple of weeks but then reappear without any known triggers. She has a family history of generalized anxiety disorder in mom, OCD in dad. She is not on any medications currently. Otherwise, she is doing well in school, and has been told she has “above average intelligence. Mom does, however, report that she has “an anxious temperament.” What is her diagnosis? Case 2: Benjamin ● 11 year old with history of inattention and hyperactivity presenting with a history of throat clearing since age 10, with grimacing and shoulder shrugging. Mom is frustrated with his behavior, saying “first he wouldn’t stop disrupting class by clearing his throat loudly, which finally got better over the last few weeks, but now he’s starting to make grunting sounds!” Benjamin says he can’t control these actions, that he just has an urge to them and feels better after doing them. He otherwise is not on any medications. His brother has a history of ADHD. What is his diagnosis? Tic Disorders: DSM V diagnoses ● Tourette’s disorder: the presence of both motor and vocal tics for more than 1 year (Case 2: Benjamin) ● Persistent (chronic) motor or vocal tic disorder: single or multiple motor or vocal tics for more than 1 year, but not both motor and vocal (Case 1: Leslie) ● Provisional tic disorder
    [Show full text]
  • Tourette Syndrome— Much More Than Tics Moving Beyond Misconceptions to a Diagnosis
    Cover article LOWELL HANDLER First of two parts Tourette syndrome— much more than tics Moving beyond misconceptions to a diagnosis By Samuel H. Zinner, MD Far more people have heard of Tourette syndrome than know what it actually looks and sounds like—or how it feels to the person who has it. That’s a major reason the diagnosis of this condition—the most severe tic disorder—is often missed. A change of perception begins with understanding the breadth and variability of symptoms and being aware of comorbidity. ore than a century has passed since the ical figures (including the Roman Emperor Claudius, French neurologist Georges Gilles de la Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and 18th century English Tourette first described the condition literary scholar Samuel Johnson) testify to the wide- that bears his name, a name familiar to spread awareness of TS across cultures and time, de- the lay public and health professionals spite (or perhaps because of) its perceived rarity. So it alike. Once considered so rare that neurologists might seems that the medical community trailed the un- Mexpect to witness the disorder perhaps once in their trained community by centuries in recognizing the professional lifetime, Tourette syndrome (TS) is, in syndrome. fact, common enough that virtually all pediatricians From the time of its initial medical description in will have several patients with this condition in their 1885 until the 1960s, medical experts viewed TS as a practice. Yet, despite its name recognition and the psychological disorder, and treatment was customarily number of people it affects, TS often goes undiag- directed toward psychotherapy.
    [Show full text]
  • The Portrayal of Tourette Syndrome in Film and Television Samantha Calder-Sprackman, Stephanie Sutherland, Asif Doja
    ORIGINAL ARTICLE COPYRIGHT ©2014 T HE CANADIAN JOURNAL OF NEUROLOGICAL SCIENCES INC . The Portrayal of Tourette Syndrome in Film and Television Samantha Calder-Sprackman, Stephanie Sutherland, Asif Doja ABSTRACT: Objective: To determine the representation of Tourette Syndrome (TS) in fictional movies and television programs by investigating recurrent themes and depictions. Background: Television and film can be a source of information and misinformation about medical disorders. Tourette Syndrome has received attention in the popular media, but no studies have been done on the accuracy of the depiction of the disorder. Methods: International internet movie databases were searched using the terms “Tourette’s”, “Tourette’s Syndrome”, and “tics” to generate all movies, shorts, and television programs featuring a character or scene with TS or a person imitating TS. Using a grounded theory approach, we identified the types of characters, tics, and co-morbidities depicted as well as the overall representation of TS. Results: Thirty-seven television programs and films were reviewed dating from 1976 to 2010. Fictional movies and television shows gave overall misrepresentations of TS. Coprolalia was overrepresented as a tic manifestation, characters were depicted having autism spectrum disorder symptoms rather than TS, and physicians were portrayed as unsympathetic and only focusing on medical therapies. School and family relationships were frequently depicted as being negatively impacted by TS, leading to poor quality of life. Conclusions: Film and television are easily accessible resources for patients and the public that may influence their beliefs about TS. Physicians should be aware that TS is often inaccurately represented in television programs and film and acknowledge misrepresentations in order to counsel patients accordingly.
    [Show full text]
  • G E O R G E S G I L L E S D E L a T O U R E T
    G e o r g e s G i l l e s d e l a T o u r e t t e L i f e a n d w o r k by Hermann Krämer Translation: Dr. Christine Daniels Georges Albert Édouard Brutus Gilles de la Tourette was born on October 30th 1857 in Saint-Gervais-les-Trois-Clochers, a small village near Loudun in the département Vienne in west-central France. His father, Théodore, was a merchant and had four children, of which Gilles was the eldest. He grew up in a family that already had brought forth many physicians and scholars. Little is known about his early childhood: His education started at the boarding school of Chatellerault, where he was striking as an exceptionally talented but also restless and rebelling pupil, who often was bored by school lessons. He commenced medical studies at the University of Poitiers at the early age of 16 years and finished his studies in 1881 with great success. - 2 - Subsequently he left for Paris to continue his medical education. This time Paul le Gendre, a friend of Gilles, was describing Gilles in the following way [1]: He was a sociable man and excellent speaker with a loud, rough and slightly hoarse voice. He was very spirited, sometimes flying into a passion, and tended to become impatient. In discussions, a single contradiction made him explode and not even a great number of opponents of his representations was able to bridle and moderate him. Even in loudest and heated debates his voice could be identified easily.
    [Show full text]
  • Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorder
    Research Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorder Associated with Streptococcal Infection (PANDAS): Clinical Manifestations, IVIG Treatment Outcomes, Results from a Cohort of Italian Patients Piero Pavone1, Raffaele Falsaperla1, Francesco Nicita2, Andreana Zecchini3, Chiara Battaglia1, Alberto Spalice 2, Lucia Iozzi3, Enrico Parano4, Giovanna Vitaliti1, Alberto Verrotti5, Vincenzo Belcastro6, Sung Yoon Cho7,†, Dong-Kyu Jin7, Salvatore Savasta3 Abstract Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorder associated with Streptococcal Infection (PANDAS) is characterized with main clinical features including obsessive-compulsive disorders and tics, acute-onset in prepubertal age, relapsing-remitting course, association with neurological abnormalities (mainly choreiform movements and motor hyperactivity), and temporal relationship with group A streptococcal infections. Thirty- four children with a serious- severe grade of PANDAS were enrolled in Italian Institutions with the aim to report clinical manifestations of the patients and their response to the intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) treatment. All patients were selected according to the Swedo‘s criteria and specific laboratory investigations as suggested by Chang for the PANS and treated with IVIG at the dosage of 2 g/kg/day for two consecutive days. At the onset, all patients presented with at least, one psychiatric manifestation including anxiety, emotional lability, bedwetting, enuresis, and phobia, and oppositional behavior including temper tantrums, personality changes, and deterioration in math skills and handwriting. At the laboratory investigations, positivity of pharyngeal swab for streptococcal infection in most of the patients and variable titers of anti-DNase B and ASO were found. In 29 patients reduction or disappearing of the motor symptoms were reached after 1 or 2 cycles of IVIG treatment, while in 5 patients the symptoms reappeared after the third cycle of IVIG.
    [Show full text]