Myths About Tourette Syndrome (and Why They Are False)

Gilles de la Tourette syndrome, better known as Tourette syndrome, is a neurological disorder characterized by many motor and phonic tics that last for more than a year. It first manifests itself in childhood or adolescence, before the age of 18, and worldwide, only 3% of the population suffers from it. It is a curious syndrome that causes a lot of controversy among people and consequently, many myths and false beliefs have been created about it.

What is Tourette syndrome?

As we mentioned, The symptoms that mainly occur are involuntary movements or tics in the arms, neck, trunk, face and body members The most common of these involuntary movements is the facial tic, eyelids, grimaces on the face and nose. These tics cannot be controlled by the patient and in extreme cases, they can significantly harm the person’s life. Fortunately, most cases fall into the mild category and the individual is able to lead a functional life.

The exact cause of the syndrome is unknown, and therefore, a multifactorial component is assumed to be triggered by a combination of inherited, genetic, and environmental factors. Likewise, research also suggests that certain neurotransmitters, such as dopamine and serotonin, may be involved.

Nevertheless, Yes, there are related risk factors such as having a family history of Gilles de la Tourette syndrome or other tic disorders and gender In fact, men are three to four times more likely than women to develop Gilles de la Tourette syndrome.

In short, the combination of the clear visibility of tics and the little information that exists both in society and in the community of health professionals, causes erroneous beliefs to flourish about the syndrome that, as a consequence, make the integration of these people difficult. its diagnosis and of course, the therapeutic solutions. In today’s article, we will analyze this in depth.

Tics

Before continuing, it is important to make a point about tics. These are the most common symptoms of Tourette Syndrome and therefore, it is crucial to understand them well. Tics are defined as sudden twitches, movements, or sounds that people make repeatedly and cannot control voluntarily To give you an idea, it’s like having hiccups. You may not want to hiccup, but your body does it anyway. In this regard, there are two types of tics, motor and vocal:

This doesn’t end here. Tics can also be simple or complex:

Myths about Tourette syndrome

Now that we better understand Tourette Syndrome and tics, below are the most common myths about Tourette Syndrome: