Pediatric Care

Pediatric Care for Tourette Syndrome

The Northwestern Medicine Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Center offers complete care for children with tic disorders at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. As a joint program with the Movement Disorders Program at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, we work with pediatric patients with tic disorders before they move to adult care.

The tic disorder program at Lurie Children’s Hospital is the only pediatric movement disorders program in the Chicago metropolitan area. It is led by one of the few pediatric movement disorder specialists in the country.

The multidisciplinary program brings together many pediatric movement disorders specialists and experts, including:

  • Neurologists
  • Psychiatrists
  • Psychologists
  • Physiatrists

The Pediatric Movement Disorders Program is led by Joanna Blackburn, MD. Dr. Blackburn is an attending physician in neurology and assistant professor in pediatrics-neurology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. She is board-certified in neurology with qualifications in child neurology.

Parents of children under the age of 18 should seek a Tourette syndrome evaluation for their child if the child makes sudden purposeless movements or vocalizations that affect their quality of life.

Effective treatment starts with the right diagnosis. At the Northwestern Medicine Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Center, our care team will learn if your child has Tourette syndrome using diagnostic tests.

These may include: