Hindawi Publishing Corporation Psychiatry Journal Volume 2013, Article ID 198746, 7 pages http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/198746 Research Article Cognitive Aspects of Hyperactivity and Overactivity in Preadolescents with Tourette Syndrome Anick Laverdure, 1,2 Kieron O’Connor, 2,3,4 and Marc E. Lavoie 2,4,5 1 University of Quebec in Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada H2Y 0A3 2 Fernand-Seguin Research Centre, Louis-H. Lafontaine Hospital, 7331 Hochelaga Street, Montreal, QC, Canada H1N 3V2 3 Department of Psychoeducation and Psychology, University of Quebec in Outaouais, Gatineau, QC, Canada J8Y 3GS 4 Department of Psychiatry, University of Montr´ eal, Montreal, QC, Canada H3T 1J4 5 Laboratoire de Psychophysiologie Cognitive et Sociale, Montreal, QC, Canada Correspondence should be addressed to Kieron O’Connor; kieron.oconnor@umontreal.ca Received 29 November 2012; Revised 18 January 2013; Accepted 21 January 2013 Academic Editor: Umberto Albert Copyright © 2013 Anick Laverdure et al. his is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Attention deicit disorder with hyperactivity (ADHD) is a common comorbidity in children with Tourette syndrome (TS). However, motor restlessness and high levels of sensorimotor activation or “overactivity” may be a feature of TS rather than a distinct ADHD comorbidity. he link between overactivity and ADHD in TS has yet to be established and in particular between adult and preadolescent manifestations. he current study furthers this understanding of ADHD features in TS by investigating the relationship between cognitive and behavioral aspects of ADHD and TS. he style of planning (STOP) overactivity scale was compared in preadolescent ( = 17) and adult ( = 17) samples. he STOP overactivity scale measures the characteristic overactive style of planning in everyday life. he aims of the study were twofold as follows: (1) to see if an overactive style was present in adolescents as well as in adults, and (2) to see if this overactive style correlated with hyperactivity, impulsivity, or perfectionism. Results suggest that overactivity may be a better description of the hyperactivity manifestations in TS. Behavioral components of overactivity were present in preadolescents while the cognitive components were more frequent in adults. Overactivity relates at the same time to perfectionism and impulsivity. 1. Introduction Tourette syndrome (TS) is a tic disorder characterized by the presence of at least one phonic tic and several motor tics for 3 consecutive months (American Psychiatric Association [1]. A tic is deined as an involuntary, sudden, repetitive and stereotyped movement or vocalization. TS has to be diag- nosed before the age of 18 and is more frequent in males than in females (1.5 : 1 to 3 : 1) [2–6] TS is present in 5 to 30 children and in 1 to 2 adults on 10000 [1]. Over the last decade, many epidemiological studies have tried to establish a more representative prevalence rate of TS [7–11], and the prevalence rate of TS is estimated now to be one individual in 200 [12]. Rates of comorbidity vary across studies and estimates between 50% and 90% of children with TS have suicient behavioral and emotional symptoms to meet diagnostic cri- teria for a comorbid disorder [13, 14]. In most cases, the externalized manifestations of these comorbid disorders may be more disruptive than the tics per se and can oten be the main motivator for seeking help [12]. he disorders most frequently associated with TS are attention deicit disorder with hyperactivity (ADHD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), anxiety and mood disorders, behavioral disorders, and learning disorders [13, 15]. 1.1. Comorbidity of Tourette Syndrome and Attention Deicit Disorder with Hyperactivity. ADHD is the disorder most oten associated with TS in children. here are three types of ADHD determined by the predominant category of symp- toms: inattention, hyperactivity/impulsivity, and mixed [1].