Functional Neurological Symptom Disorder in Williams Syndrome: Case Series and Review of Relevant Literature

Background: Williams syndrome (WS) is a neuro-developmental disorder associated with several medical and psychiatric comorbidities. Objective: To describe the clinical presentation and treatment course of functional neurological symptom disorder (FNSD) in 3 adult pa-tients with WS. Methods: This report describes the clinical presentation and long-term follow-up of 3 in-dividuals with WS and FNSD who experienced a range of clinical presentations and responses to treatment. The literature on the clinical assessment and treatment of FNSD as it applies to patients with neurodevelopmental disorders is reviewed. Results: FNSD treatment strate-gies used in the general population were successfully adapted for these 3 patients. Literature on the diagnosis and treatment of FNSD in patients with neuro-developmental disorders is lacking. Conclusions: FNSD may be more common in individuals with WS than pre-viously appreciated, and future studies describing the prevalence, clinical presentation, risk factors, and treat-ment of FNSD in WS are needed. (Journal of the Academy of Consultation-Liaison Psy-chiatry 2022; 63:170-179)

Automated summary

This study described the clinical presentation and treatment course of functional neurological symptom disorder (FNSD) in 3 adult patients with Williams syndrome (WS). Literature review revealed a lack of research on the diagnosis and treatment of FNSD in patients with neuro-developmental disorders.