A Process-Oriented View of Procedural Memory Can Help Better Understand Tourette's Syndrome.

Bence Cs Farkas,Eszter Tóth-Fáber,Karolina Janacsek,Dezso Nemeth

doi:10.3389/fnhum.2021.683885

Abstract

Tourette’s syndrome (TS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by repetitive movements and vocalizations, also known as tics. The phenomenology of tics and the underlying neurobiology of the disorder have suggested that the altered functioning of the procedural memory system might contribute to its etiology. However, contrary to the robust findings of impaired procedural memory in neurodevelopmental disorders of language, results from TS have been somewhat mixed. We review the previous studies in the field and note that they have reported normal, impaired, and even enhanced procedural performance. These mixed findings may be at least partially be explained by the diversity of the samples in both age and tic severity, the vast array of tasks used, the low sample sizes, and the possible confounding effects of other cognitive functions, such as executive functions, working memory or attention. However, we propose that another often overlooked factor could also contribute to the mixed findings, namely the multiprocess nature of the procedural system itself. We propose that a process-oriented view of procedural memory functions could serve as a theoretical framework to help integrate these varied findings. We discuss evidence suggesting heterogeneity in the neural regions and their functional contributions to procedural memory. Our process-oriented framework can help to deepen our understanding of the complex profile of procedural functioning in TS and atypical development in general.

Highlights

Reviewed by: Patrizia Silvia Bisiacchi, University of Padua, Italy Noa Benaroya Milshtein, Schneider Children’s Medical Center, Israel
We propose that a process-oriented view of procedural memory functions could serve as a theoretical framework to help integrate these varied findings
We presented the current state of the evidence for altered procedural memory and habit learning in Tourette’s syndrome

Summary

Introduction

Reviewed by: Patrizia Silvia Bisiacchi, University of Padua, Italy Noa Benaroya Milshtein, Schneider Children’s Medical Center, Israel. We discuss and offer a selective review of the complex pattern of findings in Tourette’s syndrome, with studies indicating both normal, impaired and enhanced procedural learning/memory performance. Results pertaining to habit learning more strictly are those of Palminteri et al (2011), who obtained evidence indicating increased effects of reinforcement in unmedicated TS patients on a sequence learning task, where stimuli were associated with different outcomes: high reward or minimal reward.

Results

Conclusion