Prevalence of tics and Tourette syndrome in an inpatient adult psychiatry setting

OBJECTIVE: Given the widely recognized genetic basis for Gilles de la Tourette syndrome (TS) and the suggestion that the putative TS gene(s) may be expressed as or associated with a variety of psychiatric illnesses, this study was undertaken to assess the prevalence of tics and TS in a psychiatric inpatient population. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING AND PATIENTS: 200 consecutive adult patients who were admitted to the psychiatric wards of University College London Teaching Hospitals. OUTCOME MEASURES: TS and related behaviours, as assessed by the comprehensive semi-structured National Hospital Interview Schedule. RESULTS: None of the 200 patients had definite TS, but 2 were observed to have motor tics; 10 had a history of tics (present for less than a year), and 7 reported a family history of tics. Thus, 19 (9.5%) inpatients qualified for inclusion in a broadly defined TS diathesis. These rates are significantly lower than those reported in a similar community based epidemiological study of adolescents (p = 0.018). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings do not support the theory that TS and related behaviours are over-represented among adult inpatients with psychiatric illnesses.