Steroid hormones and Tourette's syndrome: early experience with antiandrogen therapy

We report here the first use in Tourette's syndrome of the nonsteroidal androgen receptor blocking agent flutamide. One man and one woman underwent open trials of the medication, and a second man participated in a placebo-controlled, double-blind crossover trial. Improvement in tic symptoms ranged from 45 to 60%. The improvement was sustained in the woman during daily flutamide use and in one man during its intermittent use. One man's symptoms became refractory to treatment after 5 weeks of flutamide use, whereas the woman became depressed and had protracted diarrhea during her treatment.