Neuroimaging in Tourette Syndrome: Research Highlights from 2014 to 2015

Abstract

Tourette syndrome (TS) is a developmental neuropsychiatric disorder of the central nervous system defined by the presence of chronic tics. While investigations of the underlying brain mechanisms have provided valuable information, a complete understanding of the pathophysiology of TS remains elusive. Neuroimaging methods provide remarkable tools for examining the human brain and have been used to study brain structure and function in TS. In this article, we review TS neuroimaging studies published in 2014–2015. We highlight a number of noteworthy studies due to their innovative methods and interesting findings. Yet, we note that many of the recent studies share common concerns, specifically susceptibility to motion artifacts and modest sample sizes. Thus, we encourage future work to carefully address potential methodological confounds and to study larger samples to increase the potential for replicable results.