Treatment of Tourette syndrome
There is no cure for Tourette's and no medication which works universally for all individuals without significant adverse effects; knowledge and understanding are the best treatments available for tics. Management of the symptoms of Tourette's may include pharmacological, behavioral and psychological therapies. While pharmacological treatment is reserved for more severe symptoms, other types of treatments may help avoid or improve symptoms of depression or social isolation, and improve supportive family functioning. Educating the patient, family, and surrounding community (school, church, friends, etc.) is a key part of treatment.
Tourette syndrome
Regardless of symptom severity, individuals with Tourette's have a normal life span. Although the symptoms may be lifelong and chronic for some, the condition is not degenerative or life-threatening. Intelligence is normal in those with Tourette's, although there may be learning disabilities. Severity of tics early in life does not predict tic severity in later life, and prognosis is generally favorable, although there is no reliable means of predicting the outcome for a particular individual. The gene or genes associated with Tourette's have not been identified, and there is no potential "cure". A higher rate of migraines than the general population and sleep disturbances are reported.