The coexistence of tics and dystonia
L. A. Stone and J. Jankovic
Department of Neurology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Tex. 77030.
We studied nine patients with motor and phonic tics and other features of
Tourette's syndrome, who developed persistent dystonia in addition to their
tics. All, except one, were males (mean age, 35.8 years; range, 8 to 59
years), and had onset of tics prior to age 18 years (mean age, 9 years;
range, 1.5 to 17 years). None of the patients were treated with neuroleptic
drugs prior to the onset of dystonia. Torticollis and blepharospasm were
the most common forms of dystonia. Seven patients had a history of tics in
first degree relatives. While these patients were seen in a specialized
movement disorder clinic and may, therefore, represent a population with
atypical and more severe symptoms, the high prevalence rate of dystonia
(5.0% of all patients with Tourette's syndrome seen in the clinic) suggests
that some patients with tics may have an increased risk for dystonia.
