Stereotypic movement disorder is a condition where a person repeatedly makes purposeless movements, potentially harming themselves and interfering with normal activities. The cause is unknown, but it can be caused by medical conditions, drug use, or have behavioral, genetic, or neurological origins. It occurs more often in boys and is most common in adolescence. Treatment includes behavior modification, psychotherapy, medication, and changes in the environment.
Stereotypic movement disorder is a medical condition in which a person repeatedly makes movements that have no purpose, including activities such as rocking, head banging, or nail biting. The movements must continue for a minimum of four weeks to indicate stereotypic movement disorder. Furthermore, the movements are potentially harmful to the sick person and could interfere with their normal activities.
A person with stereotyped movement disorder might bite, poke, or pick themselves. In addition, he or she may engage in eye gouging, nose picking or thumb sucking, as well as hand flapping, hand flapping or flailing, making stereotypical sounds, or playing with their hair. He or she might display a variety of stereotypical movements, or just one. When bored, frustrated or stressed, the occurrence of his stereotyped movements may increase in frequency.
The actual cause of stereotyped movement disorder is unknown, although the disorder is caused by a number of medical conditions including brain diseases and psychiatric disorders. Furthermore, drug use can lead to stereotyped movements as well. In some people, the underlying cause of the disorder may remain a mystery. Theories about stereotypic movement disorder vary, with some attributing the condition to arising through behavioral means, while others suggest genetic or neurological origins.
Stereotypic movement disorder occurs more often in boys. Also, although the disorder is found in people of all ages, it most commonly occurs in adolescence. Infants and toddlers show some stereotypical movements, such as thumb sucking, but these movements tend to disappear by the time the child reaches three or four years of age. Even though these movements are associated with the disorder, they don’t indicate that a child has the condition. Since age plays a factor in confirming the disorder, it is taken into consideration during diagnosis.
Depending on the cause of the disorder, the stereotyped movements may disappear over time or may be permanent. For example, a person who exhibits these movements due to drugs will find that they usually go away, but a person whose movements are caused by a head injury may find that her condition is permanent. After adolescence, stereotyped movements may diminish and then disappear altogether, although they may recur periodically if triggered by stress or other factors. Treatment itself includes behavior modification, psychotherapy, and in some cases, even medication. To lessen the physical harm a person with the disorder could inflict on themselves, treatment might also involve changes in the environment.
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