Ursula Kahl1, Odette Schunke1, Daniel Schöttle2, Nicole David3, Valerie Brandt4, Tobias Bäumer4, Veit Roessner5, Alexander Münchau4, Christos Ganos1,6. 1. Department of Neurology University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf Hamburg Germany. 2. Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf Hamburg Germany. 3. Institute of Neurophysiology University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf Hamburg Germany. 4. Department of Paediatric and Adult Movement Disorders and Neuropsychiatry Institute of Neurogenetics University of Luebeck Luebeck Germany. 5. Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Technical University Dresden Dresden Germany. 6. Sobell Department of Motor Neuroscience and Movement Disorders UCL Institute of Neurology London United Kingdom.
Abstract
Background: Tics are common in people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, their phenomenology and characteristics have not been studied in detail. Methods: Based on video sequences of 21 adults with ASD without intellectual disability and 16 adults with Gilles de la Tourette syndrome (GTS), tic severity, tic repertoires, and tic awareness were determined. Results: Ten ASD and all GTS participants had tics during video recordings. The ASD group had significantly fewer tics, compared to GTS. Tic distribution and tic repertoires were comparable, but more restricted in ASD. All GTS participants, but only 5 of the 10 ASD participants, were aware of their tics. Conclusions: Tics are common in adults with ASD. They are indistinguishable from tics in GTS and are similarly distributed, but less severe. Tic awareness is limited in ASD.
Background: Tics are common in people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, their phenomenology and characteristics have not been studied in detail. Methods: Based on video sequences of 21 adults with ASD without intellectual disability and 16 adults with Gilles de la Tourette syndrome (GTS), tic severity, tic repertoires, and tic awareness were determined. Results: Ten ASD and all GTSparticipants had tics during video recordings. The ASD group had significantly fewer tics, compared to GTS. Tic distribution and tic repertoires were comparable, but more restricted in ASD. All GTSparticipants, but only 5 of the 10 ASDparticipants, were aware of their tics. Conclusions: Tics are common in adults with ASD. They are indistinguishable from tics in GTS and are similarly distributed, but less severe. Tic awareness is limited in ASD.
Entities:
Keywords:
Gilles de la Tourette syndrome; autism spectrum disorder; tic awareness; tic distribution; tic phenomenology