Investigating Changes in Premonitory Urges During Habit Reversal Training for Tics

Launched by UNIVERSITY OF UTAH · Feb 11, 2025

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial is looking at how premonitory urges (PU)—the feelings that often come before a tic—change during a specific treatment called Habit Reversal Training (HRT) for children and teens with Tourette Disorder and similar conditions. The goal is to see how these urges shift during and between treatment sessions to better understand how HRT can help manage tics.

To take part in this study, participants should be between 10 and 17 years old, have at least three tics, and experience noticeable urges before their tics. They will attend five study visits, which will include training for three tics, and participate in 15 practice sessions over three weeks, either in-person or through secure video calls. It's important to note that participants should not have other major medical issues that could affect their treatment during the study. This trial is currently recruiting, and it offers a chance for kids and teens to learn new ways to manage their tics while contributing to important research.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • Participants who meet criteria for a DSM-5-TR diagnosis of a TD will be recruited to participate in this study. Participants will be eligible for the study if they
• • 1. present with at least three motor and/or vocal tics and are interested in receiving treatment,
• • 2. report experiencing a PU for each of their target tics with a minimum rating of a 4/8 on a subjective rating (i.e., the Urge Thermometer; Silverman \& Albano, 1996) for each tic,
• • 3. the targeted tics occur, on average, at least once per minute during a 10-minute direct observation,
• • 4. are between the ages of 8 and 17
• • 5. the patient has no planned changes in medication initiation or dosage during their study participation period.
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • 1. the presence of any comorbid conditions that are considered a primary treatment concern and/or could interfere with study participation or treatment (i.e., unmanaged ADHD, OCD, anxiety),
• • 2. have previously engaged in CBIT or HRT for more than 2 sessions,
• • 3. a Yale Global Tic Severity Score of 40+ (or 20+ if they present with a primary motor or vocal tic disorder),
• • 4. suspected (based on clinical presentation) that the tics are better attributed to functional neurological symptom disorder per DSM-5-TR criteria (APA, 2022).