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The pathophysiology of echopraxia/echolalia: Relevance to Gilles De La Tourette syndrome
Author(s) -
Ganos Christos,
Ogrzal Timo,
Schnitzler Alfons,
Münchau Alexander
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
movement disorders
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.352
H-Index - 198
eISSN - 1531-8257
pISSN - 0885-3185
DOI - 10.1002/mds.25103
Subject(s) - psychology , tourette syndrome , phenomenology (philosophy) , tourette's syndrome , cognitive psychology , neuroscience , developmental psychology , psychiatry , philosophy , epistemology
Echopraxia and echolalia are subsets of imitative behavior. They are essential developmental elements in social learning. Their persistence or reemergence after a certain age, though, can be a sign of underlying brain dysfunction. Although echophenomena have been acknowledged as a typical sign in Gilles de la Tourette syndrome (GTS) since its first description, their clinical significance and neural correlates are largely unknown. Here, we review the course of their scientific historical development and focus on their clinical phenomenology and differential diagnosis with a particular view to GTS. The neural basis of echophenomena will also be addressed. © 2012 Movement Disorder Society