Drug and behavioural therapy are both effective for tics in people with Tourette syndrome

Posted on 12 April 2016

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Results: Behavioural therapies are as effective as medications

Lay members and members of the Tourettes Action board were involved in the recent publication of a systematic review. A systematic review is when many research studies or papers are collected and critically analysed with a specific question in mind. The questions used to in this systematic review were about the benefits and risks of pharmacological, behavioural and physical interventions for tics in children and young people with TS. The experience of treatment and services from the perspective of young people with TS and their parents were also explored. The study can be viewed here.
The overall findings from the systematic review was that  medications which include antipsychotics, noradrenergic agents and HRT (habit reversal therapy) and/or CBIT (Comprehensive Behavioral Intervention for Tics) are effective in reducing tics in children and young people with TS. The balance of benefits and harms favours the most commonly used medications: risperidone (Risperdal®, Janssen), clonidine and aripiprazole (Abilify®, Otsuka). Behavioural therapies are as effective as medications, and young people and their parents generally prefer them as the first method of treatment . The conclusions reached were that larger and better-conducted trials addressing important clinical uncertainties are required. Since access to behavioural therapies is generally poor there is a need to evaluate other methods to widen access to behavioural interventions through use of technology including mobile applications (‘apps’) and video consultation. If you have any questions about this research please contact Seonaid Anderson, Research Manager.

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