Clinical and demographic characteristics of patients with functional movement disorders: a consecutive cohort study from a specialized clinic

Hypermobility in patients with functional seizures: Toward a pathobiological understanding of complex conditions

“…In patients with functional neurological disorder, only fixed dystonia has previously been robustly associated with higher rates of hypermobility compared to the general population [8]. A recent service evaluation of a functional neurological disorder (FND) clinic reported that 21% of patients, including seven with FS had associated hypermobility [9]. However, this study was based on clinical data recorded in the medical history of patients suggestive of potential joint hypermobility or a prior history of two or more recurrent joint dislocations, and not direct clinical assessments.…”

Cushing’s Disease Presenting with Functional Neurological (Conversion) Disorder

“…The patient's degree of finger flexion also varied day-to-day. FND symptoms can have a fluctuating course, with one study on 100 patients with functional movement disorder finding that 62% had fluctuations in the severity of their symptoms [25]. Additionally, it is not uncommon for patients with FND to have multiple functional symptoms or a history of previous functional symptoms [26]; one study found that 28 out of 100 patients with FND had mixed functional symptoms [27].…”

Hypermobile spectrum disorders symptoms in patients with functional neurological disorders and autism spectrum disorders: A preliminary study

“…Kassavetis et al ( 11 ) were amongst the first postulating it, starting from the concept that HSD was linked with psychiatric disorders and other medical conditions whose pathogenesis has not been completely elucidated, including panic disorder, anxiety, irritable bowel syndrome, chronic fatigue syndrome, and fibromyalgia; moreover, they found a 2-fold increase in the incidence of HSD in their cohort of patients with functional movement disorders (FMD) suffering from dystonia. Delgado et al ( 14 ) described the clinical and demographic characteristics of patients with FMD: among other findings, 21% of patients had clinical features suggestive of joint hypermobility, especially those with fixed limb dystonia. It was suggested that aberrant range of joint mobility can lead to physical injury, chronic pain and maladaptive maneuvers, and thus joint hypermobility may be a significant factor in the pathophysiology of fixed dystonia ( 14 , 25 ).…”

“…Delgado et al ( 14 ) described the clinical and demographic characteristics of patients with FMD: among other findings, 21% of patients had clinical features suggestive of joint hypermobility, especially those with fixed limb dystonia. It was suggested that aberrant range of joint mobility can lead to physical injury, chronic pain and maladaptive maneuvers, and thus joint hypermobility may be a significant factor in the pathophysiology of fixed dystonia ( 14 , 25 ). In a recent study by Koreki et al ( 26 ), joint hypermobility was significantly associated with Functional Seizures, also known as psychogenic non-epileptic seizures (PNES), and the association was independent of their anxiety, depression, and other demographic factors such as age, sex, education, and BMI.…”

“…In a recent paper, we discussed the literature assessing the comorbidity between FNDs and ASDs and showed that the incidence of functional neurological symptoms in a group of adults with ASDs without intellectual disabilities was significantly higher than in a group of healthy neurotypical adults (10). Previous studies also suggest that both the disorders display increased evidence of symptoms compatible with a diagnosis of hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and hypermobile spectrum disorders (hEDS/HSD), (formerly known as Joint Hypermobility Syndrome-JHS) (11)(12)(13)(14). The Ehlers-Danlos syndromes (EDS) represent a clinically and genetically heterogeneous group of heritable connective tissue diseases sharing some common features such as joint hypermobility, skin hyperextensibility, and tissue fragility.…”