title: Clinical observation on treatment of Tourette syndrome in Chinese children by clonidine adhesive patch.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the therapeutic effectiveness and safety of clonidine adhesive patch in treating Tourette syndrome (TS).
  
  
  METHODS
  From July 2010 to July 2014,a total of 261 children, who met the Chinese Classification of Mental Disorders (third edition) diagnostic criteria for TS, aged 5-12 years, were referred to the department of Pediatrics, Shaanxi Provincial People's Hospital. The patients were divided randomly into a treatment group (clonidine adhesive patch, n = 128) and a control group (haloperidol, n = 116), 17cases dropped out. The clinical effectiveness was assessed by the Yale Global Tic Severity Scale (YGTSS) at the end of fourth week. The short-term effectiveness and adverse reaction to the treatment were assessed at the end of treatment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The YGTSS score in both groups decreased after 4 weeks of treatment, but the clonidine adhesive patch group showed a higher reduction in the overall tic symptom scores (40.05 ± 3.44%) than that of the control group (17.88 ± 4.40%; P < 0.05). In the clonidine adhesive patch group, the effectiveness was 81.3% (effective in 104 patients), while it was 66.4% in the control group (effective in 77 patients). The overall effectiveness rate showed no statistical significance between the two groups (p > 0.05). There were no severe adverse events in both groups, but mild side effects (decrease of blood pressure and dizziness) were observed in 3 patients in the clonidine adhesive patch group. 2 had mild cervical muscle tension and 4 had mild drowsiness and fatigue in the control group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In the treatment of TS in children and adolescents, the clonidine adhesive patch is superior to the standard treatment with haloperidol with a safer and better-tolerated profile.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Shaanxi Provincial People's Hospital (3rd Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an, Jiaotong University), Xi'an 710068, China. Electronic address: jiaofy@yeah.net.
authors.forename: Fuyong
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Jiao
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Shaanxi Provincial People's Hospital (3rd Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an, Jiaotong University), Xi'an 710068, China.
authors.forename: Xiaoyan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Shaanxi Provincial People's Hospital (3rd Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an, Jiaotong University), Xi'an 710068, China.
authors.forename: Xipin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Shaanxi Provincial People's Hospital (3rd Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an, Jiaotong University), Xi'an 710068, China.
authors.forename: Jing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D014150:Antipsychotic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D044466:Asian People; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003000:Clonidine / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D006220:Haloperidol / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D005879:Tourette Syndrome / Q000188:drug therapy*; D057968:Transdermal Patch; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D014150:Antipsychotic Agents; D006220:Haloperidol; D003000:Clonidine
keywords: Clonidine adhesive patch; Tourette syndrome