- TSA NATIONAL CONFERENCE 2012 PRESENTATION - Slide Shows and Handouts now available on this site - Medical/Behavioral Track - DBS, Co-occurring conditions, CBIT and more - view all.
- TS-BTI (TOURETTE SYNDROME BEHAVIOR TRAINING INSTITUTE) - Recognizing the critical shortage of trained behavioral therapists for treating Tourette Syndrome (TS) and tic disorders, the Tourette Syndrome Association (TSA) has established the Tourette Syndrome Behavior Therapy Institute (TS-BTI). Developed by members of the TSA Behavioral Science Consortium, the program is designed to help increase the number and availability of therapists trained in Comprehensive Behavioral Intervention for Tics (CBIT). TS-BTI programs will be held at regular intervals at different locations around the country. Participants for the TS-BTI should be health or mental health practitioners licensed to practice independently in their state. The program registration fee is $500.00 which includes course materials and continuing education credits. For more information, click here.
- TSA INTERNATIONAL DATABASE FOR DEEP BRAIN STIMULATION STUDIES IN TOURETTE SYNDROME ESTABLISHED
An international database for previous, ongoing and future studies of deep brain stimulation in TS (TSA DBS Database) has been established. There continues to be significant interest in DBS as a therapeutic option for some individuals with severe and drug-refractory presentation of the condition. Thus, a registry that collects and permits analyzes of study parameters and outcomes could facilitate the development of this treatment approach for TS as with other disorders such as Parkinson's disease and Dystonia. The project is being led by Michal Okun, M.D. (University of Florida, FL); Jorge Juncos (Emory University, GA), M.D.; and Lauren Schrock, M.D (University of Utah, UT). We are delighted that, so far, dozens of leading experts in DBS and TS in the US, Europe and Canada are participating in this initiative. To learn more, click here.
- TSA AND PSYADON PHARMACEUTICALS TO COLLABORATE ON A DRUG TRIAL FOR TOURETTE SYNDROME TREATMENT
In May 2011 TSA and Psyadon Pharmaceuticals Inc. announced their collaboration on a clinical trial to determine the potential efficacy of a novel drug, ecopipam, for managing the symptoms of Tourette Syndrome. Ecopipam belongs to a class of agents referred to as dopamine D1 antagonists and interacts with nerve cells and systems in the brain that are thought to contribute to the development of tics and other symptoms in TS. The FDA granted ecopipam an orphan-drug designation for the treatment of TS in September 2010. The study is a Phase 2a, open-label, non-randomized trial and is designed to examine the ability of ecopipam to both reduce tic severity and to determine its safety in individuals (18 to 65 years of age) with TS. To learn more, click here.
- RE-LAUNCH OF THE TSA NEUROIMAGING CONSORTIUM
The TSA re-launched its neuroimaging consortium earlier this year with a grant award to the group of $500,000. The PI's of the new group are Bradley Schlaggar, M.D., Ph.D. and Kevin Black, M.D., both at the Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO. The other founding members of the consortium are Xavier Castellanos, M.D. and Michael Milham, Ph.D., M.D. (New York University, NY); Stewart Mostofsky, M.D. (Kennedy Krieger Institute); and Paul Thompson, Ph.D. and Elizabeth Sowell, Ph.D. (UCLA). The initial aims of the consortium are to develop a multisite working partnership; generate and reconcile pilot data from small scale fMRI studies conducted at different sites; and craft a grant application to obtain more substantial funding from the NIH to determine the neural changes that underlie TS.
- BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE CONSORTIUM PUBLISHES LANDMARK PAPER
Tested in two parallel multi-site randomized clinical trials, the CBIT procedures combine elements of habit reversal training with psychoeducation and function-based behavioral interventions. The results of the child study were recently published in JAMA (Piacentini J. et. al. Behavior Therapy for Children With Tourette Disorder: A Randomized Controlled Trial. JAMA. 2010; 303(19):1929-1937) and showed that 52.5 percent of the children who received CBIT showed significant symptom improvement compared to 18.5 percent receiving the control treatment. The benefits of CBIT also appeared to endure over time - 87 percent of CBIT responders who were reassessed six months after the end of the 10-week trial continued to show benefit. To read the paper, click here.
- TSA GENETICS CONSORTIUM STUDY SEEKS PARTICIPANTS
The underlying cause in the majority of cases of Tourette Syndrome (TS) remains elusive. However, in many families with a history of the disorder, there is compelling evidence to suggest that the inheritance of certain genes causes or contributes to the development of the condition.
The Tourette Syndrome Association's International Consortium for Genetics (TSAICG) received a grant of $1.8 million as part of the federal stimulus plan - the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. The TSAICG has already identified several chromosomes that may contain genes that predispose individuals to TS. The ARRA funding will be used to confirm these findings, by collecting DNA from an additional 3,000 individuals with TS.
Medical practitioners with patients with TS are asked to encourage them to participate in the study. To qualify for the study the patient needs to be older than 6 years of age and have a confirmed TS diagnosis. Involvement in the study includes completing a questionnaire about tics and related problems and giving a blood sample for genetic analysis. Some people will also be asked to complete an optional interview. Interested participants can learn more about the study by visiting www.findtsgenes.org or calling 1-877-883-9350 (1-TS STUDY E 50) - east coast or 1-877-883-9950 (1-TS STUDY W 50) - west coast.
- TAMARA HERSHEY, PH.D. TO REPLACE PETER HOLLENBECK, PH.D., AS CO-CHAIR OF THE TSA'S SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY BOARD
Peter Hollenbeck, Ph.D. has been co-chair of the TSA's Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) since May 2004. After many years of exemplary leadership of the group, he has decided that our MAB/SAB meeting early next year will be a good time to pass on the baton. Dr Hollenbeck will, however, continue to serve as a member of the SAB. We are pleased to announce that Tamara Hershey, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Radiology and Neurology at the Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO and member of the TSA's SAB, has accepted TSA's invitation to become co-chair of the SAB, beginning March 1, 2011.
- DISCOVERY OF A RARE GENETIC MUTATION IN TOURETTE
Dr. Matthew State and colleagues at the Yale School of Medicine published a research study in The New England Journal of Medicine (Ercan-Sencicek G. et. al. L-Histidine Decarboxylase and Tourette Syndrome. NEJM, 2010; 262:1901- 1908) in which they identified a defect in a gene - the L-histidine decarboxylase (HDC gene), that is responsible for the development of TS in two generations of a family (a father and eight of his offspring). However, as this gene defect was not found in hundreds of other families with TS, the HDC gene defect is considered to be a rare cause of TS. Click here.
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