Pediatric Neurology Trainee Award.

Each year, the journal is proud to recognize important research from those at a trainee level (i.e., medical student, resident, PhD candidate, fellow). To this end, the Pediatric Neurology Trainee Award Committee has selected this year's awardee from the pool of articles published in 2022 with a trainee contributing as first author. The selection of the award winner is based on the importance of their scientific contribution, quality of research, and overall manuscript preparation. We are delighted to announce that the recipient of the 2022 Pediatric Neurology Trainee Publication Award is Alonso Zea Vera, MD, (Figure) for his article titled “The Phenomenology of Tics and Tic-Like Behavior in TikTok.”1Zea Vera A. Bruce A. Garris J. et al.The phenomenology of tics and tic-like behavior in TikTok.Pediatr Neurol. 2022; 130: 14-20Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (18) Google Scholar Dr. Zea Vera completed this research as a movement disorders fellow at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. He currently serves as faculty at Children's National Hospital in Washington, DC. The social isolation experienced during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic prompted many youth to turn to social media as an outlet2Marciano L. Ostroumova M. Schulz P.J. Camerini A.L. Digital media use and adolescents' mental health during the Covid-19 pandemic: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Front Public Health. 2021; 9793868Google Scholar; however, excessive time spent on social media has been linked with higher risk of mental health issues in youth.3Lee Y. Jeon Y.J. Kang S. Shin J.I. Jung Y.C. Jung S.J. Social media use and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic in young adults: a meta-analysis of 14 cross-sectional studies.BMC Publ Health. 2022; 22: 995Crossref PubMed Scopus (22) Google Scholar Concurrent with the pandemic and the subsequent rise in social media usage, child neurologists noted a rise in functional ticlike disorders that occur in the setting of use of the social media application, TikTok. Youngsters view videos linked with Tourette syndrome (TS) and then mimic the movements and sounds observed in the videos, many of which are functional rather than true examples of TS. In Dr. Vera's research, pediatric movement disorder specialists evaluated the most frequently viewed TikTok #tourettes videos (n = 94) to classify the tic phenomenology and ascribe a 5-point Likert ranking of consistency with a primary tic disorder. Upon review by these professionals, the majority of videos depicted involuntary expressions of socially unacceptable words or gestures, often with features that are atypical for tic disorder such as context-dependent tics and vocal tics with more than three word phrases. Median Likert ranking of the TikTok videos was 5 (i.e., “none of the tics are typical of TS”). Therefore, the majority of videos depicted nontic behaviors, often with atypical features that were most consistent with functional ticlike disorders. The findings from this study highlight the misleading information about TS contained within popular social media outlets like TikTok. Although the study is limited by its reliance on short video footage and by the lack of a detailed medical history and neurological examination, the results of this study may prompt physicians to inquire about social media exposures when taking a history from children referred for evaluation of new-onset tics. Furthermore, this research underscores the significant influence of social media on today's society, which can lead to psychiatric morbidity and unnecessary treatment. Congratulations to Dr. Zea Vera and his coauthors on their important research that demonstrates the inaccurate perceptions that are spread by social media regarding tic disorders. The study further describes the atypical features depicted within these social media videos that argue against the diagnosis of a primary tic disorder. This study increases awareness among child neurologists and others who treat tics, so that unnecessary treatments are not prescribed.