Advancement of habit reversal therapy for children with tic disorders

Abstract

Tic disorders are common diseases in children, and may negatively impact the quality of life of those ones affected.There is no cure therapy for tics; treatment aims to diminish tic severity and frequency.Behavioral treatment is recommended as first line offer to patients in most cases.It is recognized that behavioral techniques, especially habit reversal training(HRT), can offer an effective alternative or complement to pharmacotherapy in this setting.HRT is the best-studied and most widely-used technique and there is sufficient experimental evidence to suggest that it can significantly reduce tic severity in both adults and children with Tourette syndrome and other tics.It consists of three primary components: awareness training, competing response training and social support. Key words: Habit reversal; Behavioral therapy; Tic disorders