WHEN TWIDDLING YOUR THUMBS CAN RUIN YOUR LIFE

We’ve all suffered from restless thumbs from time to time, but for some, this constant and uncontrollable motion can have a devastating effect on their lives.

Tannenberg’s Irritable Thumb Syndrome (TITS) first hit the headlines in the 1980s. It seemed only to affect professional people and was generally dismissed as an excuse for jaded businessmen to take a day or two away from the office.

However, with over 110,000 people in Britain now suffering from TITS, including such celebrities as Elton Ben and Lawrence Llewellyn-Bowel, it’s time to take this affliction seriously.

A Chief Medical Officer’s report did much to shed light on the condition earlier this year when it concluded that TITS is indeed a genuine illness.

And for one Cheetingham doctor, this news could not have come soon enough. Michael Strachan, once a neurosurgeon at London’s Maudsley Hospital, nearly lost his job, his reputation and his self respect due to the onset of TITS.

Said Dr Strachan: “To begin with, there would be only minor movement of the thumbs, such as someone might do to pass the time when bored. It generally occurred when I was feeling tired or run down. At first, I didn’t even realise it was TITS.”

However, as the condition worsened, Dr Strachan found that it was beginning to affect his work.

“As my TITS developed,” said Dr Strachan, “I found that the concentration demanded of me during an operation would set the condition off. To begin with, it would just manifest itself as a minor jerking of the thumbs. But this would rapidly escalate until my whole hands were moving like Cliff Richard’s when he performed Devil Woman on Top of the Pops.”

Things reached a low point when Dr Strachan suffered an attack while operating last year. His patient, a 48 year-old London woman, suffered irreversible brain damage as a result. Previously good-natured and easygoing, she is now prone to violent outbursts during which she waves her arms around and shouts the word ‘hamsters’.

“It was after that occurrence that things got pretty bad for me,” admitted Dr Strachan. “The hospital suspended me pending enquiries. I would almost certainly have been struck off, had it not been for the publication of the Chief Medical Officer’s report.”

Fortunately for Dr Strachan, his case was reassessed and he agreed to become a guinea pig at the Maudley’s very own fledgling TITS unit. He now knows how to spot the signs of an impending attack, and how to manage the resulting erratic hand movements.

Yet for many people, TITS is simply dismissed as nervousness or ‘being highly strung’. This leaves sufferers with a double burden - not only of enduring the condition itself, but also of feeling misunderstood and isolated.

If you think that you, a family member or friend may be suffering from TITS, you should contact your GP. Useful information can also be found at:

www.TITS.org.uk, www.TITSsupport.com and www.getyourTITSout.com