[Tic Disorder, Tourette's Syndrome] Characteristics of Tic Disorder: Girls' ADHD (1)
- Boys are more affected than girls
- ADHD can coexist.
Let's look at them one by one.
[Boys are more affected than girls]
For some reason, it is not known, but boys are characterized by more tic disorders than girls. Although it has not been revealed yet, it may be because boys are more active and have greater changes in neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin, so they are easily exposed to intense stimulation. Or it may be the effect of the male hormone 'testosterone'. Testosterone is a peptide hormone made in the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland and consists of 191 amino acids. In children, male hormones are released about 9 times a day. Since imbalances in brain areas such as the pituitary gland, frontal lobe, basal ganglia, and hypothalamus are likely to be related to tic disorders, testosterone produced by the pituitary gland may have a direct or indirect effect on tics. And it may be that this male hormone often develops during elementary school, when it has the most influence. It is not known exactly, but about 8 out of 10 children who develop tics as a result are male. Of course, it is true that there are more men and it is difficult for both men and women, but in my view, especially when girls develop tics, the pain from emotional and social gazes will be greater.
[ADHD can coexist.]
ADHD is a well-known attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder. There are symptoms of being distracted, unable to concentrate, constantly moving your hands and feet, being unable to stay still, or wandering around. Other forms of ADHD include silent ADHD, so-called drowsiness, forgetfulness, and loss of objects. They make a lot of mistakes, and they tend not to finish or complete their tasks. I also heard that an elementary school student with tics left a box lunch (nowadays, it was lunch box, but it used to be a lunch box) on the playground and forgot to eat it, and then went home and got scolded by his mother. If you buy it, you lose it again, and I saw a case where you went out with an umbrella (always a new one, and insisted on carrying only good ones) on a rainy day and lost a few more and came back. I even went out with a water bottle and lost it somewhere and came back. Judging from the severe severity, it seemed to be a case of tic disorder and ADHD. As such, about 40-60% of tic disorders have ADHD. The main symptom of ADHD is attention deficit, which may precede tics. As a result, it leads to poor academic performance, and in addition, it is combined with the constant loss of concentration due to tics, making academic work even more difficult.
The cause of ADHD is related to a lack of dopamine, which causes depression and lethargy, and decreases in learning and memory. There is a peculiarity. ADHD is known to be caused by a lack of dopamine, whereas tic disorder is known to be caused by an excess of dopamine. Isn't it strange? Dopamine excess and deficiency symptoms coexist. Because of ADHD, psychiatrists prescribe dopamine-inducing drugs (ex. Concerta) and eat them, which causes tics or worsens as a side effect. The coexistence of opposite symptoms is characteristic of tic disorders and ADHD. As such, the problem of neurotransmitters is very complex, and the formula of 1+1=2 does not hold. Therefore, I think that tic disorder is not simply due to dopamine overload, as it is known. Rather than excessive, it is closer to 'imbalance'. There are drugs that reduce or increase dopamine, but there is currently no drug that can correct the imbalance that keeps popping up with +-. That is, it is very difficult to treat. This coexistence with ADHD is one of the characteristics of tic disorder.
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