Movement Disorders

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Summary
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Diagnosis and Tests
Treatments and Therapies

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Related Issues
Specifics
Genetics

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Summary

Imagine if parts of your body moved when you didn't want them to. If you have a movement disorder, you experience these kinds of impaired movement. Dyskinesia is abnormal uncontrolled movement and is a common symptom of many movement disorders. Tremors are a type of dyskinesia.

Nerve diseases cause many movement disorders, such as Parkinson's disease. Other causes include injuries, autoimmune diseases, infections and certain medicines. Many movement disorders are inherited, which means they run in families.

Treatment varies by disorder. Medicine can cure some disorders. Others get better when an underlying disease is treated. Often, however, there is no cure. In that case, the goal of treatment is to improve symptoms and relieve pain.

Start Here

Overview of Movement Disorders (Merck & Co., Inc.)

Diagnosis and Tests

Electromyography (EMG) (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)

Treatments and Therapies

Use of Botulinum Neurotoxin for the Treatment of Movement Disorders (American Academy of Neurology) - PDF

Related Issues

Dressing with Ease, Style and Comfort (ALS Association) - PDF

Specifics

Angelman Syndrome (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)
Chorea (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)
Fragile X-Associated Tremor and Ataxia Syndrome (FXTAS) (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development)
Myoclonus (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke) Also in Spanish
Myoclonus (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke) - Short Summary
Neuroacanthocytosis (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)
Neurodegeneration with Brain Iron Accumulation (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)
Paroxysmal Choreoathetosis Disease (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)
Paroxysmal Dyskinesias (Dystonia Medical Research Foundation)
Psychogenic Movement (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)
Sydenham Chorea (Saint Vitus Dance) (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)
Tardive Dyskinesia (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)

Genetics

Genetics Home Reference: 3-methylglutaconyl-CoA hydratase deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: action myoclonus-renal failure syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: ADCY5-related dyskinesia (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Allan-Herndon-Dudley syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Alpers-Huttenlocher syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Angelman syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: ataxia neuropathy spectrum (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: ataxia with vitamin E deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: autosomal recessive cerebellar ataxia type 1 (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: autosomal recessive spastic ataxia of Charlevoix-Saguenay (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: biotin-thiamine-responsive basal ganglia disease (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: chorea-acanthocytosis (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Christianson syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: congenital mirror movement disorder (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Costeff syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: deafness-dystonia-optic neuronopathy syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: dentatorubral-pallidoluysian atrophy (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: dilated cardiomyopathy with ataxia syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: essential tremor (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: familial paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: familial paroxysmal nonkinesigenic dyskinesia (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: FOXG1 syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: hypermanganesemia with dystonia, polycythemia, and cirrhosis (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: infantile-onset spinocerebellar ataxia (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Lesch-Nyhan syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: leukoencephalopathy with brainstem and spinal cord involvement and lactate elevation (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Marinesco-Sjögren syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: McLeod neuroacanthocytosis syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: mitochondrial membrane protein-associated neurodegeneration (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: myoclonic epilepsy myopathy sensory ataxia (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: myoclonus-dystonia (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: pantothenate kinase-associated neurodegeneration (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: Perry syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: PPM-X syndrome (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: PRICKLE1-related progressive myoclonus epilepsy with ataxia (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: rapid-onset dystonia parkinsonism (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: sepiapterin reductase deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: spinocerebellar ataxia type 1 (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: spinocerebellar ataxia type 2 (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: spinocerebellar ataxia type 3 (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: spinocerebellar ataxia type 6 (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: succinic semialdehyde dehydrogenase deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: triosephosphate isomerase deficiency (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: VLDLR-associated cerebellar hypoplasia (National Library of Medicine)
Genetics Home Reference: X-linked dystonia-parkinsonism (National Library of Medicine)

Statistics and Research

Medical Marijuana in Certain Neurological Disorders (American Academy of Neurology) - PDF

Clinical Trials

ClinicalTrials.gov: Ataxia (National Institutes of Health)
ClinicalTrials.gov: Chorea (National Institutes of Health)
ClinicalTrials.gov: Dyskinesia, Drug-Induced (National Institutes of Health)
ClinicalTrials.gov: Movement Disorders (National Institutes of Health)
ClinicalTrials.gov: Torticollis (National Institutes of Health)

Journal ArticlesReferences and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

Find an Expert

Find a Neurologist (American Academy of Neurology)
Movement Disorder Clinics (National Ataxia Foundation)
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Also in Spanish

Children

EMG (Electromyography) (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation)
Tics, Tourette Syndrome, and OCD (American Academy of Pediatrics)

Teenagers

Tics (Nemours Foundation)

Patient Handouts

Angelman syndrome Also in Spanish
Chronic motor tic disorder Also in Spanish
Facial tics Also in Spanish
Movement - uncontrollable Also in Spanish
Movement - uncontrolled or slow Also in Spanish
Movement - uncoordinated Also in Spanish
Movement - unpredictable or jerky Also in Spanish
Neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation (NBIA) Also in Spanish
Tardive dyskinesia Also in Spanish