According to The Wall Street Journal, more teenage girls visit the doctor when they have tics.
Tics usually begin in childhood and become more severe over time.
Research suggests that teens develop tics after watching TikTok videos featuring people with Tourette's.
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Multiple countries have reported an increase in teenage girls with tics. Doctors believe that TikTok, anxiety, depression and TikTok may be contributing factors.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the rise in cases began shortly after the pandemic. It has puzzled and alarmed doctors. According to several medical journals, the teens were watching TikTok videos from people who claimed they had Tourette syndrome.
According to VOA News Tourette syndrome can cause tics, repetitive involuntary movements or sounds. The majority of the disorder affects boys. Tics usually begin in childhood and progress over time.
Kirsten MllerVahl, a Hanover-based doctor, told the Jerusalem Post that she is seeing more teenage and young adult girls with tics. Mller-Vahl has been treating Tourette's disorder for 25 years and said that while everyone with the disorder is unique, her patients have similar tics to the ones she was seeing.
She soon discovered that the patients mimicked the actions of a German YouTuber, who shared online her experience with the disorder.
The Journal reported that some centers are seeing tics at 10 times the usual rate. While no data is available on the scale of the problem, there are no international or national statistics. The usual number of cases seen at centers was one to two per month before the pandemic. However, some reports now say that they are seeing 10 to 20 cases per month.
Caroline Olvera, a Rush University Medical Center Chicago movement-disorders fellow, said that she observed many patients blurting out "beans" in a British accent. This included patients who did not speak English. She learned that a top British TikToker blurted out the word "beans" eventually.
Doctors said that the problem is not Tourette's but a functional movement disorder. The Journal was also informed by doctors that many of those who developed tics were previously diagnosed with anxiety and depression, which had been worsened by the pandemic.
Mariam Hull, a Texas Children's Hospital child neurologist, recently published a paper that found that although psychological disorders have the potential to spread, they are confined to specific geographic locations. However, social media has enabled them to spread worldwide.
According to her, it's unlikely that a person will develop tic from just one video. However, TikTok's algorithm ensures that children are constantly seeing the same videos.
Hull stated that some children had pulled out their smartphones and shown me their TikTok. It's filled with alphabet challenges and Tourette cooking.
According to The Jerusalem Post, these disorders can be treated. According to The Journal, doctors suggested that children take a break from social media and that parents inquire about the type of videos their children are watching. Parents should also seek help if their child exhibits tics that disrupt daily life.
