OVERWHELMED BY A DOPAMINE FLOOD

SCIENTISTS believe the tell-tale ‘tics’ experienced by people with Tourette’s can be explained by abnormalities in the brain. The most significant may lie in hormone dopamine, which aids communication between the brain and nerve cells in the body.

Dopamine is involved in an array of behavioural processes, including voluntary movements, mood, stress, addiction and reward and punishment.

Studies suggest that those with Tourette’s syndrome have an excess of dopamine in brain areas involved in processing emotions and movement. This pattern is also seen in those with a twitch – but a diagnosis of Tourette’s requires both a vocal and a movement tic.

This dopamine flood explains why sufferers’ tics are more frequent when they feel intense emotions.

Medication that blocks dopamine in the brain is the most effective treatment.