Temporary remission of tardive dystonia following electroconvulsive therapy

Electroconvulsive Therapy and Movement Disorders. New Perspectives on A Time-Tested Therapy

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has been a very well known therapy in Psychiatry for over 80 years. ECT is considered useful in treating acute mania, severe depression and other psychiatric conditions. Over time, this therapy has also been used in several movement disorders including Parkinson disease (PD) and Huntington disease (HD). In this brief review, I summarize the recent History and evolution of ECT, its proven and potential applications in movement disorders as well as its potential mechanisms.

Successful Electroconvulsive Therapy for a 74-year-old Female with Major Depressive Disorder and Tardive Tremor: A Case Report and Literature Review

Tardive tremor is an infrequently form of tardive syndrome that is developed from prolonged treatment with dopamine receptor blocking agents. This condition presents as a prominent tremor that may cause significant distress but currently lacks effective treatment. Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has been applied to treat tardive syndrome. In this study, we report a 74-year-old female patient with major depressive disorder, whose tardive tremor and depressive symptoms showed remarkable improvement after receiving 10 sessions of ECT treatment.

Remission of tardive dystonia (blepharospasm) after electroconvulsive therapy in a patient with treatment-refractory schizophrenia

Tardive dystonia is a movement disorder dominated by involuntary muscle contractions that may be tonic, spasmodic, patterned or repetitive, associated with the use of dopamine-receptor blocking agents. Most of the patients with tardive dystonia present initially with blepharospasm. Treatment of dystonia is generally disappointing. A patient with chronic paranoid schizophrenia who developed blepharospasm is described here. Blepharospasm remitted after a course of electroconvulsive therapy. Remission was sustained until 3 months after stopping maintenance electroconvulsive therapy.

The current status of tardive dystonia

Tardive dystonia (TDt), a persistent dystonia associated with exposure to neuroleptic drugs, is an uncommon disorder. It differs from tardive dyskinesia (TDk) in epidemiology, clinical features, risk factors, pathophysiology, course, prognosis, and treatment outcome. TDt seems to develop faster and is more painful, distressing, and disabling than tardive dyskinesia. In this article, evidence is reviewed on the face, descriptive, construct, and predictive validity of this iatrogenic complication of antipsychotic drugs. It is suggested that TDt should not be lumped together with TDk. It deserves a separate nosological status as an independent diagnostic category. The subclassification of TDt into various subtypes based on coexistence of other movement disorders is suggested.

Treatment of tardive dystonia with an antispastic agent

Tardive dystonia is a difficult condition to treat. We describe the case of a patient with tardive dystonia that was unresponsive to various pharmacological and electroconvulsive therapies. The patient showed dramatic improvement after the administration of eperisone, a centrally acting muscle relaxant. Eperisone and tolperisone are beta-aminopropiophenone derivatives which are used clinically as antispastic agents. To date there have been no reports describing the effect of such muscle relaxants on tardive dystonia. The results of our study suggest that these muscle relaxants may be promising therapeutic drugs for the treatment of tardive dystonia.

Managing antipsychotic-induced acute and tardive dystonia

Antipsychotic-induced extrapyramidal adverse effects continue to be a serious problem in the treatment of psychotic disorders. While the pathophysiology of these adverse effects is not well understood, much recent research has focused on improving our ability to use available pharmacotherapy in the most effective and least toxic manner. Acute dystonic reactions only occur within the first days of antipsychotic treatment. They are often distressing and frightening for the patient and may even be dangerous. However, they can be effectively prevented or reversed with anticholinergics. Furthermore, the growing use of the new atypical antipsychotics will lead to a significant decrease in the rate of acute dystonic reactions. In contrast, tardive dystonia is a long-lasting menace in the course of antipsychotic treatment, for which there is no established therapy. Tardive dystonia is sometimes disabling or disfiguring and, like other tardive disorders, is potentially irreversible. Because, in most cases, patients need to continue taking the antipsychotic that has caused the adverse effect to prevent relapse of the mental illness, preventive measures are crucial. Antipsychotics should be prescribed only for patients affected by psychotic disorders, when definitely indicated and at the lowest effective dosage. The use of clozapine and other novel antipsychotic agents is also likely to represent an important step in the prevention and treatment of tardive dystonia. Compared with traditional antipsychotics, most of the new antipsychotics are characterised by a low acute extrapyramidal adverse effects liability and they also bring the hope of reducing the risk of tardive disorders. If tardive dystonia has occurred, switching to clozapine or another atypical antipsychotic and treatment with tetrabenazine, reserpine and botulinum toxin are possible options.

Tardive dystonia. Prevalence, risk factors and clinical features

In order to replicate the results of our previous study of tardive dystonia (TDt) and to enlarge the studied sample, we examined 154 consecutive psychiatric in-patients who had been exposed to neuroleptic drugs for a cumulative period of at least three months. The present study provides further data supporting a distinction between TDt and tardive dyskinesia (TDk). The patients with TDt tend to be younger, male, less exposed to neuroleptic drugs, and to have a more severe movement disorder. TDt appears to be the most frequent form of secondary dystonia, and there is evidence that its prevalence has so far been underestimated.

Tardive dystonia. Prevalence, risk factors, and comparison with tardive dyskinesia in a population of 200 acute psychiatric inpatients

In a population of 200 consecutive inpatients with a history of at least 3 months' total cumulative neuroleptic exposure, the prevalence of tardive dystonia (TDt) was 4%, higher than previously reported. The prevalence of tardive dyskinesia (TDk) was 22%. Patients with TDt did not differ in demographic or clinical variables from nondyskinetic patients. In comparison with patients with TDk, patients with TDt were significantly younger, had a more severe movement disorder, and had received neuroleptics for the first time fewer years before. Patients with TDk were significantly older than patients without tardive disorders, both when they were examined and when they had started their first neuroleptic treatment. Furthermore, they had started their first neuroleptic treatment more years before. These results support the distinction between TDt and TDk, and suggest that the previously reported prevalence of TDt might have been underestimated.

Electroconvulsive therapy in Parkinson's disease and other movement disorders

Early case reports note marked improvements in the signs of Parkinson's disease (PD) in several patients with coexisting psychiatric disorders after treatment with electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). Studies since 1959 reveal improvement of parkinsonism in over half of PD patients receiving ECT, regardless of the presence or absence of psychiatric comorbidity. Drug-induced parkinsonism, tardive dystonia, and tardive dyskinesia have also been shown to improve with ECT administration; tic syndromes have achieved mixed results. In animals, ECT enhances dopamine-mediated effects and increases GABA concentrations in the CNS. Optimal parameters relevant to the antiparkinsonism effects of ECT require further study.

Pisa syndrome without neuroleptic exposure in a patient with dementia of the Alzheimer type

A case of Pisa syndrome in a 60-year-old man with dementia, probably of the Alzheimer type, who had never been exposed to any psychotropic medication is described. He also had some extrapyramidal features and myoclonus. Treatment with amantadine was slightly beneficial. We believe that this report is the first of its kind.