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Tic Disorders More Common Than Previously Believed

Nov. 5, 2001 -- Most of us have seen Tourette's syndrome depicted on TV: A character is plagued by wild, uncontrollable outbursts of cursing, whooping, or jerking movements that interfere with his life and livelihood. While the reality is only rarely so dramatic -- the involuntary, repetitive sounds and movements called tics are usually quite mild -- research is showing that Tourette's and other tic disorders are not only far more common than previously thought, they can seriously hamper a child's school performance.

When researchers looked at nearly 1,600 schoolchildren in Rochester, N.Y., they found that more than a quarter of the children in special education classes had some sort of tic disorder, and 8% met the criteria for Tourette's. But even in the general population, a fifth of the children had some sort of tic disorder, and 3% met the criteria for Tourette's. That's between 50% and 75% higher than previously thought.

"The fact that a child has tics probably signifies a subtle brain developmental disorder," says study leader Roger Kurlan, MD, professor of neurology at the University of Rochester Medical Center, in a news release. "It's like a window into the brain: When you see a child with tics, it's a sign that the wiring isn't quite right. Tics are observable markers that this person is more likely to have problems in school."

Tics aren't always recognized for what they are -- they can be extremely subtle. Some common ones include rapid blinking, scrunching up one's nose, facial twitches, and even repetitive sniffing or throat-clearing.

According to the researchers, tics appear to originate with a problem in an area of the brain -- the basal ganglia -- that is also implicated in obsessive-compulsive disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and some learning disabilities. This finding "may serve as a stimulus for scientific exploration of the basal ganglia's role in learning and scholastic achievement from which new therapies may emerge," they write.

Fortunately, tic disorders generally respond well to treatment. "It's important to recognize [tic disorders] in children with school problems as many of the [symptoms] are treatable and ... proper treatment could have a favorable impact on school performance and social and emotional development," the researchers write.

The findings appear in the Oct. 23 issue of the medical journal Neurology.