Movement disorders care

Movement disorders are a group of conditions that affect the nervous system and cause problems with movement control. The nervous system sends messages to the muscles to contract (shorten) or relax to create smooth, coordinated movement. In people with movement disorders, the nervous system cannot properly send these messages to the muscles.

For over four decades, Penn Medicine has provided the most advanced treatments and support for patients living with movement disorders like Parkinson’s disease, tremors, and Tourette’s syndrome. Based on our experience as one of the largest movement disorders clinics in the nation, we can diagnose your condition accurately and develop targeted treatment plans to help you regain more coordinated movements.

We’re with you for the long haul, providing ongoing monitoring and support throughout your treatment journey. This continuity of care can significantly improve your treatment outcomes, resulting in improved movement control and quality of life. 

A collaborative team of movement disorders specialists   

At Penn Medicine, our patients receive the highest quality treatment for movement disorders from a team of experts working together on all aspects of your care. Our neurologists, neuropsychologists, and neurosurgeons collaborate to address specific movement disorders symptoms with customized treatments backed by research, applying advanced approaches that might not be widely available.

Our neurology team works closely with our specialized nurses, nurse practitioners, and social workers, who support patients and caregivers throughout the treatment process. They also work together with physical, occupational, and speech therapists who provide rehabilitative care that helps people with movement disorders live safer, more independent, and more active lives. 

People who come to Penn Medicine for movement disorders care find:

• National recognition: The National Parkinson’s Foundation and the Lewy Body Dementia Association have named our Parkinson’s disease and dementia with Lewy bodies subspecialty clinics as centers of clinical excellence. These recognitions acknowledge our outstanding clinical care and commitment to research that moves the field forward and improves patient care.
• Neurosurgical expertise: We have wide-ranging treatments for movement disorders and often work with patients on even the most complex cases. Whenever possible, we offer the latest minimally invasive procedures for movement disorders, some of which are not available elsewhere in the region. Other providers seek us out for referrals for their most challenging cases.
• Collaborative treatment model: Movement disorders care requires a team of different specialists working together to come up with the best solutions. Our team meets weekly to carefully discuss and plan the best path forward for every patient.
• Clinical research focus: Many of our doctors are also researchers who actively search for more effective movement disorders treatments and improved understanding of these conditions. We integrate the most current research into our care plans to bring our patients innovative treatments, often before they are widely available.
• Virtual accessibility: Penn Medicine’s neurology department, including the movement disorders team, was one of the first to use telemedicine during the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure our patients received important care. Today, we are expanding our telemedicine efforts to patients with movement disorders who are homebound or who live in rural or remote locations.