Tourette Syndrome (TS)

Tourette syndrome (TS) causes involuntary movements or vocals that might be annoying and severe in some cases. Tourette’s causes mild symptoms in most cases, and it can often be controllable when the patient becomes an adult.

Tourette syndrome (TS)

Tourette syndrome is a neurological disorder, and it’s a type of tic disorder. It causes quick, repeated, sudden, and involuntary movements or sounds.

Tourette’s typically develops in early childhood, in the ages between 5 and 10 years old, and it affects males more than females. TS usually improves during late adolescence and early 20s.

Causes of Tourette syndrome (TS)

• There isn’t a specific cause for Tourette syndrome (TS), but it occurs due to the interaction between several genetic variations and environmental factors. Some research showed the existence of abnormalities in certain areas in the brain, the circuits that connect these areas, and certain neurotransmitters (dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine) that are responsible for the connection between the neurons.
• The risk of Tourette’s might increase in the case of a family history and also if there were health problems during pregnancy or if the pregnant mother smoked during pregnancy.

Symptoms of Tourette syndrome (TS)

TS symptoms might be mild or severe, depending on the case, and they vary in severity, type, frequency, and location.

In some cases, the symptoms might worsen due to certain triggers, and the symptoms don’t get milder in light sleep, yet they go away during deep sleep.

Some mild movement symptoms:

• Facial grimacing.
• Shoulder shrugging.
• Head or shoulder jerking.
• Eye blinking and other eye movements.

Some simple vocal symptoms:

• Grunting.
• Barking.
• Sniffing.
• Throat clearing.

Some complex motor symptoms:

• Facial grimacing with a head twist and a shoulder shrug.
• Hopping or jumping.
• Twisting or bending.
• Sniffing or touching something.
• The patient might sometimes do self-harm movements, such as punching the face.

Some complex sound symptoms:

• Repeating a certain word or sentence.
• Repeating someone’s word or sentence.
• Using swear or vulgar words.

Tourette’s syndrome might be accompanied by other disorders; the most common of them are ADHD, OCD, anxiety, depression, learning difficulties, behavioral problems, social skills deficit, sleeping problems, and sensory problems like touching, hearing, and others.

Diagnosis Tourette syndrome (TS)

• There isn’t a specific method to diagnose Tourette’s syndrome (TS), but it’s diagnosed by monitoring the child’s symptoms and how the condition is developing.

Treatment of Tourette syndrome (TS)

• There isn’t a cure for Tourette’s, yet there are some therapies that contribute to relieving some symptoms, like some medications and behavioral and psychological therapies.