title: Spontaneous remissions in spasmodic torticollis.
abstract: We reviewed the frequency of spontaneous remissions in spasmodic torticollis (ST). One hundred sixteen patients with idiopathic ST (72 F, 44 M) were examined. The age at onset ranged from 9 to 69 (mean, 38.1 +/- 1.3). Twenty-one patients (18%) were Jewish. Eleven patients (9%) had a history of familial dystonia. Remissions longer than 1 year unrelated to treatment were observed in 14 patients (12%) (9 F, 5 M). They occurred in the first year of ST in 13 patients (93%) and in the eighth year in 1. Duration of remissions ranged from 1 to 20 years (mean, 6.5 +/- 1.6). Two patients had three remissions, and another had two. The mean age at the onset of ST in patients with remission was 26.4 +/- 3.3 (SEM) and ranged from 9 to 49. The age at the onset in the patients without remissions was 39.7 +/- 1.4, ranging from 10 to 69 (p less than 0.01). In the remission group, 3 patients were Jewish (21%); in the non-remission group, 18 (18%) were Jewish. There was a familial history in 1 case with remission (7%) and in 10 cases (10%) without remission. Spontaneous remissions in the course of ST seem to be more frequent in patients with early onset, and they occur usually during the first year.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009128:Muscle Spasticity; D012075:Remission, Spontaneous; D013997:Time Factors; D014103:Torticollis