E-Mail Philadelphia, July 7, 2021 - Tourette syndrome, a neurodevelopmental disorder, causes motor and phonic "tics" or uncontrollable repeated behaviors and vocalizations. People affected by Tourette syndrome can often suppress these tics for some time before the urges become overwhelming, and researchers have long wondered at the neural underpinnings of the suppression effort. Now, in a new study using a non-invasive technique to measure brain activity called high-density electroencephalography (hdEEG), researchers at Yale School of Medicine have assessed the impact of tic suppression on functional connectivity between brain regions. The study appears in "Tic suppression is an important feature of Tourette syndrome. Understanding how someone may temporarily gain control over their tics may inform several research areas in Tourette syndrome. Yet, brain correlates of tic suppression have not been studied extensively, especially in children," said Denis Sukhodolsky, PhD, senior author of the study, and Associate Professor at the Yale Child Study Center at the Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.