Tourette Syndrome: Causes and Medications

Tourette Syndrome is a Neurological condition which starts in childhood and which has uncontrollable movements and sounds.

• It’s  known as Tourette’s Disease or TD and Chronic Motor And Vocal Tic Disorder.
• It’s a childhood neurological condition.

WHAT IS TOURETTE SYNDROME (TS) ?

•  It is a neuro plastic disorder which develops in childhood.
•  Tourette syndrome can be caused by damage to the brain and nerves.
• It’s the vocal and tics syndrome.
• In this the child has no control over the movement and sound.
• Because of this the child can create unwanted sounds and involuntary movement.
• The symptoms vary from mild to severe according to severity and age.

(Source: YouTube https://youtu.be/WVRblkxoNB8)

 Causes Of Tourette Syndrome 

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•  The exact cause of Tourette syndrome is not known.
• Though it’s a genetic disorder sometimes it is hereditary.
• It is linked to different parts of the human brain, called basal ganglia.
• Basal ganglia can control the body movements.
• But the person who has Tourette syndrome is having differences carrying chemicals and signals which cause imbalance between brain and nerves.
• Sometimes the child who is having ADHD or some other neurological condition has greater chances to develop TS.
• There are more than one cause of occurring TS.

What is Called Tics?

• Tics are the unwanted and involuntary repetitive movements  or sounds which occur in Tourette syndrome.
• For example:- Blinking of Eyes, Jerky Movements of Shoulder, Leg tapping etc.
• There are mainly 2 types of Tics can be seen.
• They are following :

1. Motor Tics
2. Vocal Tics

(Source: YouTube https://youtu.be/CFaiN_nZsYk)

Sign And Symptoms Of Tourtte Syndrome 

(Imagesource:-https://www.autismag.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Tourette-Syndrome-Symptoms.jpg)

•  The symptoms may vary according to mild to severe.
• The symptoms can’t get worse with age.
• The syndrome can’t get completely cured but the symptoms can get managed with proper therapy , medications and self care.
• The sign and symptoms are following:

1. Excessive Mood Changes

Which Includes :

1. Anxiety
2. Hyperactivity
3. Poor concentration
4. Lack of Attention
5. Learning Disability
6. OCD

2. Vocal Tics

They includes:

1. Coughing
2. Yelping
3. Clearing your throat frequently
4. Grunting
5. Sniffing
6. Shouting
7. Repeating improper or unwanted words and sentences

(ImageSource:-https://www.epainassist.com/images/tourettes-syndrome.jpg)

3. Muscular Movements

They includes:

1. Blinking of Eyes
2. Shoulder Shrugging
3. Involuntary Muscle Contraction
4. Muscular jerking
5. Muscle spasms
6. Involuntary bodily movements
7. Making a Face
8. Mouth twitching

4. Other Common Symptoms

They includes:

1. Tics
2. Nonsense wordings
3. Meaningless repetition of their own words
4. Swearing or Poor resistance

So, all these are the signs and symptoms of Tourette Syndrome.

Diagnosis Of Tourette Syndrome:

• Generally Tourette Syndrome is self diagnosable.
• The early symptoms of Tourette Syndrome can show the age between 3 to 9 years of onset.
• The symptoms depend upon the severity of the syndrome.
• Tics occur several times a day, sometimes the whole day or sometimes between the intermittent timings.
• The physician can recommend a neurologist if he shows the symptoms of TS.
• There are no tests available to diagnose Tourette Syndrome.
• The severity depends on the duration of vocal and motor tics, but it’s not necessary that both tics are present at the same time.

(Source: YouTube https://youtu.be/gQRK8RllHdE)

Life Span 

•  The life span of the patient with TS is generally normal.
• Though this is a chronic disorder still it is not a degenerative disease.
• The expectancy of life is normal.
• There are no other degenerative changes shown.

Treatment Plan For Tourette Syndrome

The treatment plan can depend upon the age , Severity and duration of tics of patients with TS.

The treatment can be long as this disorder can be managed but not get totally cured.

The treatment plan is following:

1. Medications
2. Therapy
3. Diet planning
4. Self Care
5. Botox

(Source: YouTube https://youtu.be/MoqHW1PqBdU)

The symptoms can be managed by all these:

1. Medications

• Medications can be prescribed on the basis of severity of symptoms and age of the patient.
• Generally medication is given mainly to control tics.
• Antidepressants are also given along with them.
• This medication can help to control and relieve the symptoms.

2. Therapy

• Though it’s not a psychological disorder , counseling therapy is beneficial for patients with TS.
• This therapies includes CBT( Cognitive Behavior Therapy)
• And another is ERP (Exposure And Response Prevention).
• These both therapies are the first line treatment for children with TS.

3. Diet Modification

• The modification in diet can help to control the symptoms.

It includes :

1. Reducing the refined Sugars
2. Decrease the intake of Caffeine or eliminate the use of caffeine
3. Increase the intake of omega 3 and fatty acids
4. Eliminate gluten.
5. Increase Fibre intake in diet

>. All these modifications can help to control the symptoms and healthy diet can also help to make the routine organized.

4. Self Care 

• This is not the first line treatment but this is the most important part of treatment.
• The self care includes:

1. Regular Exercise
2. Meditation
3. Active and organized lifestyle
4. Education towards the Syndrome
5. Different relaxation techniques
6. Deep breathing exercise
7. Music therapy
8. Art therapy

• All these can be used to manage the TS and Tics.
• By doing this regularly one can manage the symptoms of TS.
• Every year 7th June is celebrated as the Tourette Syndrome Awareness day to give knowledge about how to live and enjoy life with TS as its more seen in girls rather than boys.
• Be Aware About TS and Spread The Awareness, too, because Every Child Is Special.
• Read more about Fine Motor Activities For Childern with Special Needs