Biography

Research Summary
Analysis of androgens in Tourette Syndrome. We hypothesize that patients with Tourette Syndrome have higher excretion of androgens compared to age matched controls. This may be part of the reason that Tourette is more common in young men, and typically worsens around the onset of puberty.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS)to treat Tourette Syndrome. There is early data to indicate that rTMS may be effective for treating Tourette. We have partnered with an external colleague who has a novel, patented rTMS device that we will be trialing as a treatment for patients affected by Tourette.

Prospective, multicenter analysis of sleep disorders in medication naïve patients with Tourette Syndrome. We have some preliminary data that indicates that patients with Tourette may have higher rates of restless leg syndrome and other sleep disorders. We will use standardized sleep questionnaires, analysis of serum ferritin levels, and Yale Global Tic Severity scales to assess these patients.

Neuropsychological profiles of patients with Tourette Syndrome. Out neuropsychologist, Josh Hall, has accumulated years of data on patients with Tourette. There is precious little data on the neuropsychological deficits seen in Tourette. We plan to analyze the accumulated clinical data on our patient population and see if specific patterns of deficits are present in this patient population.

Behavioral patterns of patients with Tourette. One of our nurse practitioners, Laura Banning, plans to analyze patterns of maladaptive behavior in patients with Tourette using the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL).