The first national estimate reveals that three children out of every 1,000 in the United States has Tourette Syndrome (TS). These results were released by the Centers for Disease Control in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
Boys are three times more likely than girls to be diagnosed with TS. The disease is twice as common in children between the ages of 12-17 as those ages 6-12 years. Of those children with a TS diagnosis, the disease in 27% was categorized as being moderate to severe.and 79% were diagnosed with at least one additional mental health or neurological illness.
Tourette Syndrom is a neuroligical disease that begins in the early childhood years with the symptoms peaking at around 10-12 years of age . The child experiences recurring motor tics, and at least one vocal tic. The behavioral manifestations of TS are involuntary.
TS has been linked to ADHD, learning disabilities, and socialization problems. Non-Hispanic white children are twice as lickely as African American or Hispanic children of having TS.
The first case of Tourette Syndrome was reportd in 1825 by Dr. Itard. He described a patient named Marquise de Dampiere as having symptoms including involving involuntary tics of the body and various vocalizations, including what is called “echolalia”, which is a repletion of verbal utterances, and “coprolalia”, the involuntary swearing or use of socially inappropriate remarks. In 1883 Dr. Georges Gilles de la Tourette, the neurologist for whom the syndrome was later named, also described this patient.
Treatment for Tourette Syndrome varies, with many agreeing that the goal of treatment should not be to erase all symptoms, but to control symptoms should they become out of control. Mild TS does not usually need medication while moderate to severe TS may be treated with medication, counseling and/or behavioral therapy. Each case is always treated individually.
For more information on Tourette Syndrom, visit the National Tourette Syndrome Association.
