Behavior therapy for tics in children: acute and long-term effects on psychiatric and psychosocial functioning.

Children (n = 126) ages 9 to 17 years with chronic tic or Tourette disorder were randomly assigned to receive either behavior therapy or a control treatment over 10 weeks. This study examined acute effects of behavior therapy on secondary psychiatric symptoms and psychosocial functioning and long-term effects on these measures for behavior therapy responders only. Baseline and end point assessments conducted by a masked independent evaluator assessed several secondary psychiatric symptoms and measures of psychosocial functioning. Responders to behavior therapy at the end of the acute phase were reassessed at 3-month and 6-month follow-up. Children in the behavior therapy and control conditions did not differentially improve on secondary psychiatric or psychosocial outcome measures at the end of the acute phase. At 6-month posttreatment, positive response to behavior therapy was associated with decreased anxiety, disruptive behavior, and family strain and improved social functioning. Behavior therapy is a tic-specific treatment for children with tic disorders.

Clinical Characteristics of Children and Adolescents with a Primary Tic Disorder.

The clinical characteristics and rates of co-occurring psychiatric conditions in youth seeking treatment for a chronic tic disorder (CTD) were examined. Children and adolescents (N = 126) with a primary CTD diagnosis were recruited for a randomized controlled treatment trial. An expert clinician established diagnostic status via semi-structured interview. Participants were male (78.6%), Caucasians (84.9%), mean age 11.7 years (SD = 2.3) with moderate-to-severe tics who met criteria for Tourette's disorder (93.7%). Common co-occurring conditions included attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; 26%), social phobia (21%), generalized anxiety disorder (20%), and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD; 19%). Motor and vocal tics with greater intensity, complexity, and interference were associated with increased impairment. Youth with a CTD seeking treatment for tics should be evaluated for non-OCD anxiety disorders in addition to ADHD and OCD. Despite the presence of co-occurring conditions, children with more forceful, complex, and/or directly interfering tics may seek treatment to reduce tic severity.

Behavior therapy for children with Tourette disorder: a randomized controlled trial.

CONTEXT: Tourette disorder is a chronic and typically impairing childhood-onset neurologic condition. Antipsychotic medications, the first-line treatments for moderate to severe tics, are often associated with adverse effects. Behavioral interventions, although promising, have not been evaluated in large-scale controlled trials. OBJECTIVE: To determine the efficacy of a comprehensive behavioral intervention for reducing tic severity in children and adolescents. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Randomized, observer-blind, controlled trial of 126 children recruited from December 2004 through May 2007 and aged 9 through 17 years, with impairing Tourette or chronic tic disorder as a primary diagnosis, randomly assigned to 8 sessions during 10 weeks of behavior therapy (n = 61) or a control treatment consisting of supportive therapy and education (n = 65). Responders received 3 monthly booster treatment sessions and were reassessed at 3 and 6 months following treatment. INTERVENTION: Comprehensive behavioral intervention. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Yale Global Tic Severity Scale (range 0-50, score >15 indicating clinically significant tics) and Clinical Global Impressions-Improvement Scale (range 1 [very much improved] to 8 [very much worse]). RESULTS: Behavioral intervention led to a significantly greater decrease on the Yale Global Tic Severity Scale (24.7 [95% confidence interval {CI}, 23.1-26.3] to 17.1 [95% CI, 15.1-19.1]) from baseline to end point compared with the control treatment (24.6 [95% CI, 23.2-26.0] to 21.1 [95% CI, 19.2-23.0]) (P < .001; difference between groups, 4.1; 95% CI, 2.0-6.2) (effect size = 0.68). Significantly more children receiving behavioral intervention compared with those in the control group were rated as being very much improved or much improved on the Clinical Global Impressions-Improvement scale (52.5% vs 18.5%, respectively; P < .001; number needed to treat = 3). Attrition was low (12/126, or 9.5%); tic worsening was reported by 4% of children (5/126). Treatment gains were durable, with 87% of available responders to behavior therapy exhibiting continued benefit 6 months following treatment. CONCLUSION: A comprehensive behavioral intervention, compared with supportive therapy and education, resulted in greater improvement in symptom severity among children with Tourette and chronic tic disorder. TRIAL REGISTRATION: clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00218777.