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==Overview==
A '''tic''' is a sudden, repetitive, stereotyped, nonrhythmic movement (motor tic) or sound (phonic tic) that involves discrete groups of muscles. Tics can be invisible to the observer (e.g.; abdominal tensing or toe crunching).  Movements of other [[movement disorder]]s (e.g.; [[chorea (disease)|chorea]], [[dystonia]], [[myoclonus]]) must be distinguished from tics.  Other conditions (e.g.; [[autism]], [[stereotypic movement disorder]]) also include movements which may be confused with tics.  Tics must also be distinguished from compulsions of [[OCD]] and [[seizure]] activity.

== Description and classification ==

Tics are classified as motor vs. phonic, and simple vs. complex.  

'''Motor''' tics are movement-based tics affecting discrete muscle groups.  

'''Phonic''' tics are involuntary sounds produced by moving air through the nose, mouth, or throat.  They may be alternately referred to as verbal tics or vocal tics, but most diagnosticians prefer the term phonic tics to reflect the notion that the [[vocal cords]] are not involved in all tics that produce sound.<ref>Robertson MM. Tourette syndrome, associated conditions and the complexities of treatment.  ''Brain''. 2000 Mar;123 Pt 3:425-62. PMID 10686169</ref>

Tics may increase as a result of [[Stress (medicine)|stress]], tiredness, or high energy emotions, which can include negative emotions, such as [[anxiety]], but positive emotions as well, such as excitement or anticipation. Relaxation may result in a tic decrease or a tic increase (for instance, watching television or using a computer), while concentration in an absorbing activity often leads to a decrease in tics.<ref>National Institutes of Health (NIH). [http://web.archive.org/web/20050323092424/http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/tourette/detail_tourette.htm Tourette Syndrome Fact Sheet] Accessed 23 Mar 2005.</ref><ref>Packer, L. [http://www.tourettesyndrome.net/tourette_primer4.htm Tourette Syndrome "Plus"].  Accessed 12 Feb 2006.</ref>  Neurologist and writer [[Oliver Sacks]] describes a physician with severe [[Tourette syndrome]], (Canadian Mort Doran, M.D., a pilot and surgeon in real life, although a [[pseudonym]] was used in the book), whose tics remit almost completely while he is performing surgery.<ref>Doran, Morton L.  The Tourette Syndrome Association, Inc., Connecticut Chapter 1998 Educators' Conference; 1998 Nov 6; Danbury, CT.</ref><ref>Sacks O.  ''[[An Anthropologist on Mars]]''.  Knopf, New York, 1995.</ref>  

Immediately preceding tic onset, most individuals are aware of an urge<ref>Cohen AJ, Leckman JF. Sensory phenomena associated with Gilles de la Tourette's syndrome.  ''J Clin Psychiatry''. 1992 Sep;53(9):319–23. PMID 1517194</ref>  that is similar to the need to yawn, sneeze, blink, or scratch an itch. Individuals describe the need to tic as a buildup of tension<ref>Bliss J. Sensory experiences of Gilles de la Tourette syndrome. ''Arch Gen Psychiatry''. 1980 Dec;37(12):1343–47. PMID 6934713 </ref> which they consciously choose to release, as if they "had to do it".<ref>  Kwak C, Dat Vuong K, Jankovic J. Premonitory sensory phenomenon in Tourette's syndrome. ''Mov Disord''. 2003 Dec;18(12):1530–33. PMID 14673893</ref>  Examples of this premonitory urge are the feeling of having something in one's throat, or a localized discomfort in the shoulders, leading to the need to clear one's throat or shrug the shoulders. The actual tic may be felt as relieving this tension or sensation, similar to scratching an itch.  Another example is blinking to relieve an uncomfortable sensation in the eye.  

Tics are described as semi-voluntary or ''"unvoluntary",''<!-- Please do NOT CHANGE "UNVOLUNTARY" to "INVOLUNTARY"; it is not a typo, it is the correct term, please read the text and the references. --><ref name=TSADef>The Tourette Syndrome Classification Study Group. Definitions and classification of tic disorders. ''Arch Neurol.'' 1993 Oct;50(10):1013–16. PMID 8215958 [http://web.archive.org/web/20060426232033/http://www.tsa-usa.org/research/definitions.html Full text,] archived [[April 26]] [[2006]].</ref> because they are not strictly ''involuntary''—they may be experienced as a ''voluntary'' response to the unwanted, premonitory urge.  A unique aspect of tics, relative to other movement disorders, is that they are suppressible yet irresistible;<ref name=Dure>Dure LS 4th, DeWolfe J. Treatment of tics. ''Adv Neurol.'' 2006;99:191-96. PMID 16536366</ref> they are experienced as an irresistible urge that must eventually be expressed.<ref name=TSADef/>  Some people with tics may not be aware of the premonitory urge. Children may be less aware of the premonitory urge associated with tics than are adults, but their awareness tends to increase with maturity.<ref name=TSADef/> 

===Simple tics===
'''Simple motor tics''' are typically sudden, brief, meaningless movements, such as eye blinking or shoulder shrugging.  Motor tics can be of an endless variety and may include such movements as hand-clapping, neck stretching, mouth movements, head, arm or leg jerks, and facial grimacing.  

A '''simple phonic tic''' can be almost any possible sound or noise, with common vocal tics being throat clearing, coughing, sniffing, or grunting.

===Complex tics===
'''Complex motor tics''' are typically more purposeful-appearing and of a longer nature.  Examples of complex motor tics are pulling at clothes, touching people, touching objects, [[echopraxia]] and [[copropraxia]]. 

'''Complex phonic tics''' may fall into various categories, including [[echolalia]] (repeating words just spoken by someone else), [[palilalia]] (repeating one's own previously spoken words), lexilalia (repeating words after reading them) and [[coprolalia]] (the spontaneous utterance of socially-objectionable or taboo words or phrases).  Coprolalia is a highly-publicized symptom of [[Tourette syndrome]]; however, according to the [[Tourette Syndrome Association]], Inc. (TSA), fewer than 15% of TS patients exhibit coprolalia.<ref name=TSAFAQ> [[Tourette Syndrome Association]]. [http://web.archive.org/web/20060106020124/http://www.tsa-usa.org/what_is/Faqs.html Tourette Syndrome: Frequently Asked Questions] Accessed online 6 Jan 2006.</ref><ref name=Zinner2000>Zinner SH. Tourette disorder. ''Pediatr Rev''. 2000 Nov;21(11):372-83. PMID 11077021</ref>

Complex tics are rarely seen in the absence of simple tics.  Tics "may be challenging to differentiate from compulsions",<ref>Scamvougeras, Anton.  [http://ww1.cpa-apc.org:8080/publications/archives/bulletin/2002/february/specialfeaturescamvougeras.asp Challenging Phenomenology in Tourette Syndrome and Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder: The Benefits of Reductionism.] Canadian Psychiatric Association (February 2002).  Retrieved on [[2007-06-05]]</ref>  as in the case of [[klazomania]] (compulsive shouting).

==Tic disorders==
{{main|Tic disorder}}
'''Tic disorders''' occur along a spectrum, ranging from mild to more severe, and are classified according to duration and severity (transient tics, chronic tics, or Tourette syndrome).  Tourette syndrome is the more severe expression of a spectrum of tic disorders, which are thought to be due to the same genetic vulnerability.  Nevertheless, most cases of Tourette syndrome are not severe.<ref name=Zinner2000/>  The treatment for the spectrum of tic disorders is similar to the [[treatment of Tourette syndrome]].

== Controversy and confusion ==
There is some confusion in [[Sociological_and_cultural_aspects_of_Tourette_syndrome#References_in_the_entertainment_industry|media portrayals of tics.]]  For example, in comedies, a person with muscle tics may haplessly raise their hand at an obviously inappropriate time and suffer the consequences.  This is implausible:  tics are semi-voluntary actions to alleviate the feeling of an unwanted, premonitory urge.  One would not thrust his or her arm in the air as in [[Alien hand syndrome]].

Tics must be distinguished from [[fasciculation]]s.  Small twitches of the upper or lower eyelid, for example, are not tics because they don't involve a whole muscle.  They are twitches of a few muscle fibre bundles, which you can feel but barely see.<ref>Freeman, R. [http://www.tourette-confusion.blogspot.com/ Tourette syndrome:  minimizing confusion.]  Accessed 18 February 2006.</ref>

====Contraindicated medications====

{{MedCondContrAbs|MedCond = Motor tic|Methylphenidate}}

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

== Further reading ==
* Black, Kevin J. [http://www.emedicine.com/neuro/topic664.htm Tourette Syndrome and Other Tic Disorders.]
*Evidente, GH.  [http://www.postgradmed.com/issues/2000/10_00/evidente_tic.htm "Is it a tic or Tourette's? Clues for differentiating simple from more complex tic disorders."] ''PostGraduate Medicine Online.''  October 2000 108:5.
* Swerdlow, NR.  Tourette Syndrome: Current Controversies and the Battlefield Landscape. ''Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep''. 2005, 5:329-331.  PMID 16131414
*[[Tourette Syndrome Association]]. [http://web.archive.org/web/20060524115004/http://www.tsa-usa.org/what_is/whatists.html What is Tourette syndrome?] Accessed 24 May 2006.
{{Topics related to Tourette syndrome}}
{{Symptoms and signs}}	


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