Impact of Tourette Syndrome on Education.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have shown that Tourette syndrome (TS) has an impact on academic achievements. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between the severity of tics and comorbidities and educational outcomes. METHODS: From 2005 to 2007, 395 participants were included in a large cohort (314 with TS and 81 controls) and the mean age was 12.60 ± 2.64 years. The cohort was re-examined after 4 to 8 years (median 5.6) where n = 276 participants (223 with TS and 53 controls) were included with a mean age of 18.52 ± 2.73 years. At both time points, severity of tics and the presence and severity of psychiatric comorbidity were assessed. Educational achievements were assessed through structured interviews. RESULTS: Children with TS had a lower passing rate at lower secondary and high school compared to healthy controls. More severe vocal tics were associated with fewer passing lower secondary school at a prospective level. At a cross-sectional level, more severe motor tics were associated with fewer passing high school. Tic severity only influenced children with TS without comorbidity. The severity of comorbidity was found to be associated with the educational level at a longitudinal view, but not cross-sectional. CONCLUSION: Overall, children with TS had a lower passing rate at lower secondary school and high school compared to healthy controls. We found that this difference was more likely driven by the severity of comorbidities than tic severity. It is important to be aware of academic achievement in children with TS in order to give them the right support and thereby optimize educational opportunities.

Headache in Children and Adolescents: The Association between Screen Time and Headache within a Clinical Headache Population.

BACKGROUND: More than half of children and adolescents have experienced headache within the last 3 months. Several risk factors for headache have been identified, including obesity and lack of sleep. The association between screen time and headache in children and adolescents is sparsely investigated. The aim of this study was to assess this association and evaluate if it varied according to headache diagnosis. METHOD: This cross-sectional study was performed at the tertiary pediatric outpatient clinic for headache at Herlev University Hospital. A total of 139 participants who answered a questionnaire on lifestyle factors and their daily living were included. Diagnoses of migraine and tension-type headache (TTH) were made according to the International Classification of Headache Disorders-3. Children with both migraine and TTH were allocated to a mixed headache group. We differentiated between total, leisure, and school-related screen time. RESULTS: The mean age was 13.20 ± 3.38 years and 53.2% were girls. Note that 25.2% were diagnosed with migraine without aura, 23.0% migraine with aura, 28.1% TTH, 15.8% mixed headache, and 7.9% had an unclassified headache diagnosis at the time of inclusion. There was no statistically significant difference in screen time across the five headache groups. An association between screen time and headache frequency was found in children with migraine with aura. CONCLUSION: In this study, we investigated the association between screen time and headache in children and adolescents. More screen time was associated with more frequent headaches in children with migraine with aura. Future prospective studies are needed to determine the causality of this association.