Deep Brain Stimulation in Tourette Syndrome — Op-TICS  

Tourette Syndrome Clinical Trial

Official title: Double Blind Comparison of Optimised Deep Brain Stimulation for Severe Tourette Syndrome

Status Recruiting

Clinical Trial Summary

Op-TICS is a clinical investigation of the use of Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS), with a CE marked implantable device, to reduce severe motor and vocal tics in patients who suffer from Tourette Syndrome (TS).

It is a randomised, double-blind, crossover clinical investigation for 20 patients. Op-TICS will be performed at the National Hospital for Neurology & Neurosurgery.

Following DBS surgery, participants will first enter an open adjustment phase, of 6 months, where the electrical stimulation settings of the device are optimised. Participants will then enter the double-blind phase that will include successively up to 2 weeks with stimulation on and up to 2 weeks with the stimulation off in a randomised order.

The primary outcome measure is the tic severity score measured by the Yale Global Tic Severity Scale -Total Tic Score after two weeks OFF-stimulation versus two weeks ON-stimulation in the double-blind randomised crossover phase

Clinical Trial Description

Tourette syndrome (TS) is a neuropsychiatric disorder with patients exhibiting multiple motor tics and at least one vocal tic. When these tics are distressing, medications or behavioural therapy can be used to control symptoms.

However, there are a small number of patients with very severe tics who are unresponsive to these conventional treatments and suffer a major negative impact on their quality of life. This limits their social interaction and access to most jobs. These patients are in urgent need of more effective treatments.

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a technique that involves the surgical implantation of two thin wires (electrodes) in the right and left globus pallidus, areas of the brain responsible for the control of body movement. The electrodes are connected to a stimulator placed on the chest under the skin that sends electrical signals to the brain. This type of surgery is routinely used for disorders such as Parkinson's disease and has also been used in a smaller number of TS patients.

DBS is an accepted treatment for conditions such as Parkinson's disease, dystonia and tremor. In experienced teams the risks associated with the surgery and the device are very low. A small number of patients with Tourette syndrome around the world have benefited from DBS; nevertheless, more evidence is needed before DBS can be made available as an NHS treatment for severely affected patients and NHS England has prioritised this research topic. ;

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Deep Brain Stimulation
• Syndrome
• Tourette Syndrome

• NCT number: NCT06388291
• Study type: Interventional
• Source: University College, London
• Contact: Atiyyah Moosa
• Phone: +44 20 7679 9481
• Email: cctu.optics@ucl.ac.uk
• Status: Recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: August 2, 2022
• Completion date: June 30, 2025