Group A Streptococcus Not Related to Tic Exacerbations

An international study of specialist clinic patients showed no association.

To examine whether group A Streptococcus (GAS) pharyngeal exposures are associated with worsening of tics in chronic tic disorders (CTDs), investigators enrolled 715 children with CTD (mean age, 10.7 years; 76.8% boys) from nine countries in an observational study. At 4-month intervals for 16 months, the investigators conducted visits or telephone interviews to record severity of participants' tics, obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms, and attention deficit/hyperactivity (ADHD) symptoms. Potential associations were analyzed between GAS exposures and tic exacerbations, changes in tics, and OC and ADHD symptom severity.

There were 455 exacerbations in 308 (43%) of 715 participants. Exacerbations associated with GAS exposure ranged from 5.5% to …

Reviewing Author

Michael S. Okun, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardParkinson’s Foundation; Tourette Association of America

Speaker’s BureauMedscape/WebMD CME, Movement Disorders Society CME, American Academy of Neurology CME

RoyaltiesBooks4Patients; Demos; Cambridge; Taylor and Francis; Robert Rose; Public Affairs

Grant/Research SupportNational Institutes of Health; Parkinson’s Foundation; Tourette Association of America; University of Florida Foundation

Editorial BoardsTremor and Other Hyperkinetic Movements; JAMA Neurology

Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesParkinson’s Foundation (Medical Advisor)