Clinical Diagnosis and Treatment of Tardive Dyskinesia

Tardive dyskinesia(TD) is a kind of disabling movement disorder characterized by involuntary movements of the face, neck, extremities or trunk that results from long-term use of dopamine receptor blocking agents.The most common reason is the use of antipsychotic drug(APD). Identified risk factors include the type, dose, as well as the duration of APD. Age, sex, genetics also play a role. CYP2D6, DRD2, DRD3, HTR2A, HTR2C, VMAT2, MnSOD, HSPG2 gene may be involved. The pathogenesis is not clear. Three hypotheses are proposed: dopamine receptor super-sensitivity, oxidative stress and maladaptive synaptic plasticity. TD is quite hard to cure, prevention is of vital importance. This article reviews the clinical diagnosis and treatment of TD, so as to further deepen medical staff's understanding of TD.