Treatment of Tourette syndrome
Tourette syndrome (also Tourette's syndrome or TS) is an inherited neuropsychiatric disorder with onset in childhood, characterized by the presence of motor and phonic tics. Treatment of Tourette syndrome has the goal of managing symptoms to achieve optimum functioning, rather than eliminating symptoms; not all persons with Tourette's require treatment, and there is no cure or universally effective medication. Explanation and reassurance alone are often sufficient treatment; education is an important part of any treatment plan.
SLITRK1 (gene)
A subsequent examination of the region of the SLITRK1 gene found the mutation in none of 82 patients with Tourette syndrome. The authors concluded that tests to detect variant(s) in the gene probably would have little diagnostic utility. An experiment in the effects of a microdeletion in chromosome 13q31.1 was done in a fetus, the mother had passed the microdeletion to the child and both did not have tourettes or any other OCD symptoms, showing that it may not be a direct cause of tourettes. Further attempts to replicate the study were done in multiple studies. In a Japanese study, next-gen sequencing was used to screen 92 TS patients and 361 healthy controls, none of TS patients were found to have mutations at either variant or any new mutations in the gene. In a European study it was found that the 2 original variations were not found in any of the 222 trios that were studied. However, tests were also done on SNPs in the groups and 3 were found to have variations. Two of the three variations were found to be associated with the formation of Tourette syndrome. In a different study of 381 Caucasians with some form of OCD with 356 non-OCD control patients, 3 genetic changes were found after genetic screening. Of the 3, 2 were identified only once each and the third was found in 4 OCD patients but also in a non-OCD patient. The non-OCD patient did have compulsive nail biting, but these studies show that a genetic link between SLITRK1 and patients with TS may exist they are more complex in nature than previously understood.