Tourette's syndrome

noun Tou·rette's syndrome \tu̇-ˈrets-\

medical : a disorder that causes someone to move and speak in an uncontrolled way

Full Definition of TOURETTE'S SYNDROME

: a familial neurological disorder of variable expression that is characterized by recurrent involuntary tics involving body movements (as eye blinks or grimaces) and vocalizations (as grunts or utterance of inappropriate words), often has one or more associated conditions (as obsessive-compulsive disorder), is more common in males than females, and usually has an onset in childhood and often stabilizes or ameliorates in adulthood —called also Tou*rette syndrome, \-ˈret-\

See Tourette's syndrome defined for English-language learners

Origin of TOURETTE'S SYNDROME

Georges Gille de la Tourette †1904 French physician

First Known Use: 1970

Medical Dictionary

Tourette's syndrome

noun

Medical Definition of TOURETTE'S SYNDROME

: a familial neuropsychiatric disorder of variable expression that is characterized by multiple recurrent involuntary tics involving body movements (as eye blinks, grimaces, or knee bends) and vocalizations (as grunts, snorts, or utterance of inappropriate words), that often has one or more associated behavioral or psychiatric conditions (as attention deficit disorder or obsessive-compulsive behavior), that is more common in males than females, and that usually has an onset in childhood and often stabilizes or ameliorates in adulthood—abbreviation TS; called also Gilles de la Tourette syndrome, Tourette's disease, Tourette's disorder

Biographical Note for TOURETTE'S SYNDROME

Gilles de la Tourette \zhēl-də-lä-tür-et\ , Georges (1857–1904), French physician. Gilles de la Tourette first described Tourette's syndrome in 1884. He is also remembered for his clinical studies, published in 1891, in which he expounded the ideas of the French neurologist Jean-Martin Charcot about hysteria and hystero-epilepsy.