Which disorder is characterized by tics, onset before age 21, with the first symptom often a facial tic and treated with medications to control outbursts?

Which disorder is characterized by tics, onset before age 21, with the first symptom often a facial tic and treated with medications to control outbursts?

• A. Transient ischemic attack
• B. Tourette syndrome
• C. Sciatica
• D. Spinal cord defects

Answer: (B)

Tourette syndrome is a neurodevelopmental disorder marked by multiple motor tics and at least one vocal tic that begin in childhood, often with facial tics as an early sign. Medications to control outbursts are a common part of treatment to help manage disruptive behaviors and the tics themselves. The other options don’t fit because a transient ischemic attack is a brief disruption of blood flow causing sudden neurological symptoms, not tics; sciatica is nerve pain in the leg; and spinal cord defects are structural problems with symptoms like weakness or numbness rather than tics.

Tourette syndrome is a neurodevelopmental disorder marked by multiple motor tics and at least one vocal tic that begin in childhood, often with facial tics as an early sign. Medications to control outbursts are a common part of treatment to help manage disruptive behaviors and the tics themselves. The other options don’t fit because a transient ischemic attack is a brief disruption of blood flow causing sudden neurological symptoms, not tics; sciatica is nerve pain in the leg; and spinal cord defects are structural problems with symptoms like weakness or numbness rather than tics.