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What to Know About Tardive Dyskinesia (TD)

Currently more than 57 million Americans are living with a mental illness, 14 million of whom are living with a serious mental condition 01. For those taking mental health medications to manage their conditions, some may experience the onset of TD, an often-overlooked movement disorder.

 
TD impacts 1 in 4 people taking certain mental health medications
 

Despite its estimated prevalence, only ~15% of patients are diagnosed with TD 04
 Only ~5% of those diagnosed with TD receive available treatments 04

Tardive Dyskinesia (TD) causes mild to severe involuntary movements 02 03, including:

hand icon

Hands and Fingers

Feet

Torso

Blinking

Tongue movements

TD’s impact isn’t just physical. Feeling self-conscious, embarrassed and avoiding social interactions are some of the ways TD has an impact emotionally.05 Many patients with TD remain undertreated, even while experiencing severe social, physical, and psychological impacts to their daily lives.0506

What to keep in mind if you think you have TD

If you’re experiencing TD, don’t disrupt management of your underlying mental health condition before speaking with your healthcare provider. It is possible to continue managing your mental health condition and TD at the same time.

When talking to your healthcare provider, it’s important to share how TD is impacting you physically, socially and psychologically. There are tools available on www.soundsliketd.com to help guide your conversations.

What Life is Really Like with Tardive Dyskinesia (TD)

We’re getting closer to better understanding TD. The IMPACT-TD Registry, the largest TD study known to date, is evaluating the holistic effects of TD along with real-world treatment patterns and outcomes. A broad representation of people affected by TD shows:

Fewer males were diagnosed or treated for their TD despite the healthcare provider recognizing their movements 07

Hispanics and Black Americans struggled with more severe movements and had greater impact of their movements than other racial/ethnic groups 08
Lower rate of treatment in younger adult patients (18-45 years of age) 09

Most individuals experienced the impact of TD regardless of what type of mental health conditions they had 10

References

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    U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Mental illness. National Institute of Mental Health. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/mental-illness.

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    Derrow P. What is tardive dyskinesia? Symptoms, causes, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. Everyday Health. Accessed December 13, 2023. https://www.everydayhealth.com/tardive-dyskinesia/

  3. Back to contents.

    Waln O, Jankovic J. An update on tardive dyskinesia: from phenomenology to treatment. Tremor Other Hyperkinet Mov (NY). 2013;3:tre-03-161-4138-1. doi:10.7916/D88P5Z71.

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    Data on file. Parsippany, NJ: Teva Neuroscience, Inc.

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    Warikoo N, Schwartz T, Citrome L. Tardive dyskinesia. In: Schwartz TL, Megna J, Topel ME, eds. Antipsychotic Drugs. Nova Science Publishers, Inc.; 2013:235-258

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    Hansen TE, Brown WL, Weigel RM, Casey DE. Underrecognition of tardive dyskinesia and drug-induced parkinsonism by psychiatric residents. Gen Hosp Psychiatry. 1992;14(5):340-344

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    Selvaraj V, et al. Presented at: American Psychiatric Nurses’ Association Annual Meeting; Oct 9 – Oct 12, 2024; Louisville, KY.

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    Monroe C, et al. Presented at: American Psychiatric Nurses’ Association Annual Meeting; Oct 9 – Oct 12, 2024; Louisville, KY.

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    Vando L, et al. Presented at: Neuroscience Education Institute; Nov 7 – Nov 10,2024; Colorado Springs, CO.

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    Scargle M, et al. Presented at: Annual Psych Congress Meeting; Oct 29 – Nov 2, 2024; Boston, MA.

NPS-US-NP-01856 and NPS-US-NP-01857 March 2025