Navigating a medical mystery in an elite athlete—severe dystonia induced by swimming

Abstract

Dystonia is a state of involuntary muscle contractions that cause repetitive or twisting movements. It may affect one or more parts of the body and sometimes the entire body. The condition can be mild or severe. In this unusual case, high-intensity swimming triggered the episodes of atypical functional movement disorder.

Keywords:

• Functional movement disorder
• neurology
• exercise

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The care and concern of Stanford women’s swim coach, Greg Meehan, and head athletic trainer, Scott Anderson, were much appreciated throughout Nicole’s Stanford career, as was the support of her Stanford teammates. Appreciation goes to the other clinicians who examined her: Jorge Juncos, Emory; Karen Davis Warren, Atlanta; Anwar Ahmed, Cleveland Clinic; Eric Ahlskog, Joseph Matsumoto, Michael Joyner, Jeffrey Thompson, Mayo Clinic-Rochester; Mark Hallett, Leonardo Cohen, National Institutes of Health; Camilla Kilbane, David Spiegel, Kim Bullock, Stanford University; Nancy Byl, Chadwick Christine, University of California – San Francisco; John Shoffner, Atlanta Medical Neurogenetics.