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Practitioner review: Treatments for Tourette syndrome in children and young people: a systematic review

Whittington, Craig; Pennant, Mary; Kendall, Tim; Glazebrook, Cris; Trayner, Penny; Groom, Madeleine J.; Hedderly, Tammy; Heyman, Isobel; Jackson, Georgina M.; Jackson, Stephen; Murphy, Tara; Rickards, Hugh; Robertson, Mary; Stern, Jeremy; Hollis, Chris

Practitioner review: Treatments for Tourette syndrome in children and young people: a systematic review Thumbnail


Authors

Craig Whittington

Mary Pennant

Tim Kendall

CRIS GLAZEBROOK cris.glazebrook@nottingham.ac.uk
Professor of Health Psychology

Penny Trayner

Tammy Hedderly

Isobel Heyman

Georgina M. Jackson

STEPHEN JACKSON stephen.jackson@nottingham.ac.uk
Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience

Tara Murphy

Hugh Rickards

Mary Robertson

Jeremy Stern

CHRIS HOLLIS chris.hollis@nottingham.ac.uk
Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Digital Mental Health



Abstract

Background:
Tourette syndrome (TS) and chronic tic disorder (CTD) affect 1–2% of children and young people, but the most effective treatment is unclear. To establish the current evidence base, we conducted a systematic review of interventions for children and young people.

Methods:
Databases were searched from inception to 1 October 2014 for placebo-controlled trials of pharmacological, behavioural, physical or alternative interventions for tics in children and young people with TS or CTD. Certainty in the evidence was assessed with the GRADE approach.

Results:
Forty trials were included [pharmacological (32), behavioural (5), physical (2), dietary (1)]. For tics/global score there was evidence favouring the intervention from four trials of a2-adrenergic receptor agonists [clonidine and guanfacine, standardised mean difference (SMD) = -0.71; 95% CI -1.03, -0.40; N = 164] and two trials of habit reversal training (HRT)/comprehensive behavioural intervention (CBIT) (SMD = -0.64; 95% CI -0.99, -0.29; N = 133). Certainty in the effect estimates was moderate. A post hoc analysis combining oral clonidine/guanfacine trials with a clonidine patch trial continued to demonstrate benefit (SMD = -0.54; 95% CI -0.92, -0.16), but statistical heterogeneity was high. Evidence from four trials suggested that antipsychotic drugs improved tic scores (SMD = -0.74; 95% CI -1.08, -0.40; N = 76), but certainty in the effect estimate was low. The evidence for other interventions was categorised as low or very low quality, or showed no conclusive benefit.

Conclusions:
When medication is considered appropriate for the treatment of tics, the balance of clinical benefits to harm favours a2-adrenergic receptor agonists (clonidine and guanfacine) as first-line agents. Antipsychotics are likely to be useful but carry the risk of harm and so should be reserved for when a2-adrenergic receptor agonists are either ineffective or poorly tolerated. There is evidence that HRT/CBIT is effective, but there is no evidence for HRT/CBIT alone relative to combining medication and HRT/CBIT. There is currently no evidence to suggest that the physical and dietary interventions reviewed are sufficiently effective and safe to be considered as treatments.

Citation

Whittington, C., Pennant, M., Kendall, T., Glazebrook, C., Trayner, P., Groom, M. J., …Hollis, C. (in press). Practitioner review: Treatments for Tourette syndrome in children and young people: a systematic review. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 57(9), 988-1004. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.12556

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Jan 22, 2016
Online Publication Date May 2, 2016
Deposit Date May 3, 2016
Publicly Available Date Mar 28, 2024
Journal Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry
Print ISSN 0021-9630
Electronic ISSN 0021-9630
Publisher Wiley
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 57
Issue 9
Pages 988-1004
DOI https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.12556
Keywords Paediatrics; Tourette syndrome; therapy; tics
Public URL https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/791762
Publisher URL http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jcpp.12556/abstract
Additional Information This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Whittington, C., Pennant, M., Kendall, T., Glazebrook, C., Trayner, P., Groom, M., Hedderly, T., Heyman, I., Jackson, G., Jackson, S., Murphy, T., Rickards, H., Robertson, M., Stern, J. and Hollis, C. (2016), Practitioner Review: Treatments for Tourette syndrome in children and young people – a systematic review. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. doi: 10.1111/jcpp.12556, which has been published in final form at: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jcpp.12556/epdf. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving

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