Quantitative analyses of voluntary orofacial motor control in schizophrenia and tardive dyskinesia

This paper reports the results of an investigation of voluntary control of lip, jaw, and tongue movements in schizophrenic patients with and without tardive dyskinesia. The aims of the study were to determine if voluntary orofacial motor control is disrupted in schizophrenia and to evaluate the relationship between voluntary motor control deficits and selected neurological and behavioral variables. Twenty-two schizophrenic patients and 13 normal control subjects were studied. Of the patients, 11 had moderate to severe TD. Analyses were made of performance on pursuit tracking tasks to evaluate differences between TD and non-TD patients and between medicated and currently unmedicated patients. The results indicated significant group differences in voluntary orofacial motor control. The finding that many non-TD patients exhibited voluntary motor dyscontrol suggests that this may represent a disorder independent of the involuntary dyskinesia. The findings indicated that the level of neuroleptic and/or antiparkinsonian medication was unrelated to the degree of voluntary motor control impairment. The results are discussed in terms of probable neurophysiological mechanisms underlying the motor control deficits in schizophrenia.