Bradley Hospital enrolling teens with tic disorder for research study

December 14, 2015 12:38 pm

By Niza Viñas

nvinas@abc6.com

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – A hospital in Riverside has begun enrolling teens for a study focused on the relationship between brain activity and tics.

The Pediatric Anxiety Research Center at Bradley Hospital hopes to develop a more supportive treatment to address the sudden movements of the body that cannot be controlled, which is caused by tic disorders.

Adolescents with tic disorders often face many challenges at home and in school, such as physical pain, bullying, poor self-esteem, and academic problems and conflicts at home.

Bradley Hospital says statistic show that up to 20 percent of youth will have tics at some point, and one percent will have chronic tics lasting at least one year. These figures reveal that tics are the most common movement disorder in children.

Existing treatments have been created to decrease the symptoms of tics, but are not highly effective for many children. So far there cure for tic disorders has not been discovered.

“We also know from previous studies that environment can affect tic expression. For example, some kids have worse tics when they are in a place that is over stimulating or when people make comments about tics. However, we don’t yet understand how the SMA and the environment interact in tics. Our goal is to learn if we can improve tics by reducing activity in the SMA, while also creating an environment that supports teens’ efforts to suppress.” said Christine Conelea, Ph.D., principal investigator for the study

The study involves an assessment of symptoms, and several other tests. This study is for teens between the ages of 13 and 18 who have a tic disorder or Touretts syndrome.

To learn more about this study, please call 401-432-1468 or visit www.anxious kids.org.