{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,2]],"date-time":"2026-02-02T07:58:13Z","timestamp":1770019093540,"version":"3.49.0"},"reference-count":15,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2021,5,31]],"date-time":"2021-05-31T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1622419200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Neurol."],"abstract":"<jats:p><jats:bold>Introduction:<\/jats:bold> Patients with Gilles de la Tourette syndrome (GTS) may experience blocking tics (BTs) defined as recurrent, brief cessations of motor acts. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence, age of onset, and clinical correlates of BTs in GTS patients.<\/jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Materials and Methods:<\/jats:bold> We performed a one-time registration study in a cohort of 195 consecutive GTS patients aged 5\u201366 years (mean age: 15.0 \u00b1 9.2; 47 females, 24.1%). All patients were personally interviewed and examined.<\/jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Results:<\/jats:bold> At least one BT occurred at some point in the lifetime of 73 patients (37.4%) with a mean age of onset of 10.4 \u00b1 5.9 years. BTs occurred an average of 4.8 \u00b1 5.3 years after tic onset. The most common BT was cessation of walking (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic> = 59, 80.8%), followed by speech (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic> = 19, 26.0%), running (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic> = 18, 24.7%), and writing (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic> = 9, 12.3%). Most of the patients (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic> = 52, 71.2%) reported cessation of only one activity. Clinical associations of BTs included more severe tics, overall greater number of tics, and, to a lesser extent, higher age at evaluation and comorbid obsessive-compulsive disorder.<\/jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Conclusions:<\/jats:bold> BTs represent complex tics, early and common symptoms of GTS, and are associated with a more severe form of GTS.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fneur.2021.686785","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2021,5,31]],"date-time":"2021-05-31T07:39:39Z","timestamp":1622446779000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":10,"title":["Blocking Tics in Gilles de la Tourette Syndrome"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"12","author":[{"given":"Justyna","family":"Kaczy\u0144ska","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Piotr","family":"Janik","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,5,31]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"438","DOI":"10.1002\/mdc3.12199","article-title":"Blocking phenomena in Gilles de la Tourette syndrome","volume":"2","author":"Ganos","year":"2015","journal-title":"Mov Disord Clin Pract."},{"key":"B2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"267","DOI":"10.1016\/S0733-8619(05)70311-X","article-title":"Tourette syndrome. Phenomenology and classification of tics","volume":"15","author":"Jankovic","year":"1997","journal-title":"Neurol Clin."},{"key":"B3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"911","DOI":"10.1002\/mds.25018","article-title":"Tic-induced gait dysfunction","volume":"27","author":"Fasano","year":"2012","journal-title":"Mov Disord."},{"key":"B4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"440","DOI":"10.1002\/mdc3.12188","article-title":"I need to freeze my gait","volume":"2","author":"Rizzo","year":"2015","journal-title":"Mov Disord Clin Pract."},{"key":"B5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1739","DOI":"10.3390\/ijms18081739","article-title":"Speechlessness in Gilles de la Tourette syndrome: cannabis-Based medicines improve severe vocal blocking tics in two patients","volume":"18","author":"Jakubovski","year":"2017","journal-title":"Int J Mol Sci."},{"key":"B6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"227","DOI":"10.1016\/S0021-9924(00)00020-4","article-title":"Dysfluency and phonic tics in Tourette syndrome: a case report","volume":"33","author":"Van Borsel","year":"2000","journal-title":"J Commun Disord."},{"key":"B7","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"358","DOI":"10.1159\/000081083","article-title":"Disfluency in Tourette syndrome: observational study in three cases","volume":"56","author":"Van Borsel","year":"2004","journal-title":"Folia Phoniatr Logop."},{"key":"B8","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"4","DOI":"10.1044\/leader.FTR1.07142002.4","article-title":"Tourette syndrome: the neurology of a tic: from the point of view of the scientist","volume":"7","author":"Kwak","year":"2002","journal-title":"ASHA Leader."},{"key":"B9","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"436","DOI":"10.1017\/S0012162200000839","article-title":"An international perspective on Tourette syndrome: selected findings from 3,500 individuals in 22 countries","volume":"42","author":"Freeman","year":"2000","journal-title":"Dev Med Child Neurol."},{"key":"B10","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"566","DOI":"10.1097\/00004583-198907000-00015","article-title":"The Yale global tic severity scale: initial testing of a clinician-rated scale of tic severity","volume":"28","author":"Leckman","year":"1989","journal-title":"J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry."},{"key":"B11","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"155","DOI":"10.1007\/s00787-011-0164-6","article-title":"European clinical guidelines for Tourette syndrome and other tic disorders. 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