Just as an aside, and I do know you're not asking about medication itself, but I found an interesting comment in a paper by Dr Samual Zinner regarding the GABA agonist, Baclofen.
http://www.tsa-usa.org/Medical/image...38-049T2R1.pdf
Tourette syndrome — much more than tics
GABA agonist/muscle relaxant
Adverse effects include constipation, nausea, stomach pains
Baclofen (Kemstro)a 20 mg tid
May be effective, but may be acting on anxiety rather than tics
http://www.tourette.de/forschung/med...r_tsa_2004.pdf
Article quoted from that site is from TSA-USA Newsletter of 2004 - Retrospective summary of TS literature.
Quote:
Baclofen treatment in Tourette syndrome: a double-blind, placebo-controlled,crossover trial
Singer HS, Wendlandt J, Krieger M, Giuliano J: Neurology
2001; 56(5):599-604
Abstract: Methods: Subjects received, in a randomized
sequence, 4-week medication cycles of baclofen (20 mg three
times daily) and placebo with a 2-week intervening washout
period between the cycles. Outcome measures included the
Clinical Global Impression (CGI) scale, and the Yale Global Tic
Severity Scale (YGTSS), the latter including subscales for total
tics and overall impairment. Measures were assessed at baseline
and on days 28, 42, and 70 of the study. Results: Ten children
(seven boys and three girls, aged 8 to 14) with TS participated.
Nine subjects completed the protocol; one dropped out for
psychosocial reasons. No major side effects were reported.
The mean change in CGI score (-0.9) after 4 weeks of baclofen
treatment as compared with placebo treatment showed a signifi -
cant improvement (95% CI, -1.7 to -0.1; p = 0.04). All subjects
showed some amelioration in total YGTSS score during baclofen
treatment. The mean change in total YGTSS score (-14.7) approached
signifi cance (95% CI, -30.3 to 0.9; p = 0.06). Examination
of differences between baclofen and placebo treatment
groups expressed as a percent change from baseline showed that
baclofen had a statistically signifi cant effect on both outcome
measures. Subscales of the YGTSS showed that the reduction in
total tic scores was primarily due to a reduction in the impairment
score rather than a decrease in tics. Conclusions: Children
with TS may benefi t from treatment with baclofen, although
improvements may be related to factors other than tics. Larger
studies directly comparing baclofen against other tic-suppressing
agents are recommended.
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bold added by me.