Clinical Characteristics of Children and Adolescents with a Primary Tic Disorder

Matt W. Specht; Douglas W. Woods; John Piacentini; Lawrence Scahill; Sabine Wilhelm; Alan L. Peterson; Susanna Chang; Hayden Kepley; Thilo Deckersbach; Christopher Flessner; Brian A. Buzzella; Joseph F. McGuire; Sue Levi-Pearl; John T. Walkup

doi:10.1007/s10882-010-9223-z

Clinical Characteristics of Children and Adolescents with a Primary Tic Disorder

Matt W. Specht, Douglas W. Woods, John Piacentini, Lawrence Scahill, Sabine Wilhelm, Alan L. Peterson, Susanna Chang, Hayden Kepley, Thilo Deckersbach, Christopher Flessner, Brian A. Buzzella, Joseph F. McGuire, Sue Levi-Pearl, John T. Walkup

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

50 Scopus citations

Abstract

The clinical characteristics and rates of co-occurring psychiatric conditions in youth seeking treatment for a chronic tic disorder (CTD) were examined. Children and adolescents (N=126) with a primary CTD diagnosis were recruited for a randomized controlled treatment trial. An expert clinician established diagnostic status via semi-structured interview. Participants were male (78.6%), Caucasians (84.9%), mean age 11.7 years (SD = 2.3) with moderate-to-severe tics who met criteria for Tourette's disorder (93.7%). Common co-occurring conditions included attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; 26%), social phobia (21%), generalized anxiety disorder (20%), and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD; 19%). Motor and vocal tics with greater intensity, complexity, and interference were associated with increased impairment. Youth with a CTD seeking treatment for tics should be evaluated for non-OCD anxiety disorders in addition to ADHD and OCD. Despite the presence of co-occurring conditions, children with more forceful, complex, and/or directly interfering tics may seek treatment to reduce tic severity.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	15-31
Number of pages	17
Journal	Journal of Developmental and Physical Disabilities
Volume	23
Issue number	1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/s10882-010-9223-z
State	Published - Feb 2011
Externally published	Yes

Keywords

Anxiety
Comorbid
Impairment
Tics
Tourette's disorder

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Physical Therapy, Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation
Developmental and Educational Psychology

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10.1007/s10882-010-9223-z

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Specht, M. W., Woods, D. W., Piacentini, J., Scahill, L., Wilhelm, S., Peterson, A. L., Chang, S., Kepley, H., Deckersbach, T., Flessner, C., Buzzella, B. A., McGuire, J. F., Levi-Pearl, S., & Walkup, J. T. (2011). Clinical Characteristics of Children and Adolescents with a Primary Tic Disorder. Journal of Developmental and Physical Disabilities, 23(1), 15-31. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10882-010-9223-z

Specht, MW, Woods, DW, Piacentini, J, Scahill, L, Wilhelm, S, Peterson, AL, Chang, S, Kepley, H, Deckersbach, T, Flessner, C, Buzzella, BA, McGuire, JF, Levi-Pearl, S & Walkup, JT 2011, 'Clinical Characteristics of Children and Adolescents with a Primary Tic Disorder', Journal of Developmental and Physical Disabilities, vol. 23, no. 1, pp. 15-31. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10882-010-9223-z

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abstract = "The clinical characteristics and rates of co-occurring psychiatric conditions in youth seeking treatment for a chronic tic disorder (CTD) were examined. Children and adolescents (N=126) with a primary CTD diagnosis were recruited for a randomized controlled treatment trial. An expert clinician established diagnostic status via semi-structured interview. Participants were male (78.6%), Caucasians (84.9%), mean age 11.7 years (SD = 2.3) with moderate-to-severe tics who met criteria for Tourette's disorder (93.7%). Common co-occurring conditions included attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; 26%), social phobia (21%), generalized anxiety disorder (20%), and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD; 19%). Motor and vocal tics with greater intensity, complexity, and interference were associated with increased impairment. Youth with a CTD seeking treatment for tics should be evaluated for non-OCD anxiety disorders in addition to ADHD and OCD. Despite the presence of co-occurring conditions, children with more forceful, complex, and/or directly interfering tics may seek treatment to reduce tic severity.",

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author = "Specht, {Matt W.} and Woods, {Douglas W.} and John Piacentini and Lawrence Scahill and Sabine Wilhelm and Peterson, {Alan L.} and Susanna Chang and Hayden Kepley and Thilo Deckersbach and Christopher Flessner and Buzzella, {Brian A.} and McGuire, {Joseph F.} and Sue Levi-Pearl and Walkup, {John T.}",

note = "Funding Information: This work was supported by grant R01MH070802 (clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00218777) from the National Institute of Mental Health to Dr. Piacentini, with subcontracts to Drs. Woods, Scahill, Wilhelm, Peterson, and Walkup. Dr. Scahill received support from the Yale University Clinical and Translational Sciences Award grant UL1 RR024139 from the National Center for Research Resources, NIH. We would like to express our appreciation to the children and their families who made this study possible. M.W.Specht(*).H.Kepley.J.T.Walkup Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, 600 North Wolfe Street/CMSC 314, Baltimore, MD 21287-3325, USA e-mail: mspecht1@jhmi.edu",

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AU - Peterson, Alan L.

AU - Chang, Susanna

AU - Kepley, Hayden

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AU - Flessner, Christopher

AU - Buzzella, Brian A.

AU - McGuire, Joseph F.

AU - Levi-Pearl, Sue

AU - Walkup, John T.

N1 - Funding Information: This work was supported by grant R01MH070802 (clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00218777) from the National Institute of Mental Health to Dr. Piacentini, with subcontracts to Drs. Woods, Scahill, Wilhelm, Peterson, and Walkup. Dr. Scahill received support from the Yale University Clinical and Translational Sciences Award grant UL1 RR024139 from the National Center for Research Resources, NIH. We would like to express our appreciation to the children and their families who made this study possible. M.W.Specht(*).H.Kepley.J.T.Walkup Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, 600 North Wolfe Street/CMSC 314, Baltimore, MD 21287-3325, USA e-mail: mspecht1@jhmi.edu

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N2 - The clinical characteristics and rates of co-occurring psychiatric conditions in youth seeking treatment for a chronic tic disorder (CTD) were examined. Children and adolescents (N=126) with a primary CTD diagnosis were recruited for a randomized controlled treatment trial. An expert clinician established diagnostic status via semi-structured interview. Participants were male (78.6%), Caucasians (84.9%), mean age 11.7 years (SD = 2.3) with moderate-to-severe tics who met criteria for Tourette's disorder (93.7%). Common co-occurring conditions included attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; 26%), social phobia (21%), generalized anxiety disorder (20%), and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD; 19%). Motor and vocal tics with greater intensity, complexity, and interference were associated with increased impairment. Youth with a CTD seeking treatment for tics should be evaluated for non-OCD anxiety disorders in addition to ADHD and OCD. Despite the presence of co-occurring conditions, children with more forceful, complex, and/or directly interfering tics may seek treatment to reduce tic severity.

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KW - Anxiety

KW - Comorbid

KW - Impairment

KW - Tics

KW - Tourette's disorder

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Clinical Characteristics of Children and Adolescents with a Primary Tic Disorder

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Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

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