Neurológia pre prax 5/2023

Functional tic disorder: a mass social media-induced contagion?

Tourette syndrome (TS) is one of the most common neuropsychiatric disorders of childhood. The usual age of symptom onset is between the ages of 5 and 6 years, and the vast majority of cases emerge by age 12, up to four times more often in boys than in girls. The course of the disease characteristically varies over time, with exacerbations, remissions, and changes in the tic pattern. In adolescence, the tics usually diminish and marked late exacerbations are rare. However, since 2020, the number of new cases of tic disorder has increased sharply in adolescent girls. Their manifestations are incongruent with the classical presentation of TS and are suggestive of a functional (psychogenic) origin. They show strikingly similar features to videos circulated on social media. We present the typical manifestations of the disease in several of our patients. Using the concept of mass sociogenic illness, we describe the role of social media in its spread and draw parallels with historical mass psychiatric phenomena.

Keywords: Tourette syndrome, tics, functional tic disorder, mass sociogenic illness, social media