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Tic Severity and Treatment in Children: The Effect of Comorbid Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Obsessive Compulsive Behaviors

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Abstract

While attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and obsessive compulsive disorder have been shown to have major impacts on quality of life in individuals with Tourette syndrome, there is comparatively little data on how the presence of these comorbidities influence tic severity and treatment. 114 children (mean age 10.25 years) were extensively clinically phenotyped at a single specialty clinic. While there was no difference in Yale Global Tic Severity Scale (YGTSS) scores in children with versus without ADHD, children with obsessive compulsive behaviors had significantly higher YGTSS scores (p = 0.008). There was a significant correlation between YGTSS scores and age (r = 0.344, p < 0.001). Children with ADHD were more likely to be treated for their tics within the first two years of diagnosis (OR 3.51, p = 0.009). As tic severity does not appear to be greater in children with ADHD, this association may relate to greater overall psychosocial impairment in children with this comorbidity.

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  1. Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Psychiatry, Pediatrics and Community Health Sciences, Mathison Centre for Mental Health Research and Education, University of Calgary, 3280 Hospital Drive NW, Calgary, AB, T2N 4Z6, Canada

    Tamara Pringsheim

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Pringsheim, T. Tic Severity and Treatment in Children: The Effect of Comorbid Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Obsessive Compulsive Behaviors. Child Psychiatry Hum Dev 48, 960–966 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-017-0718-z

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