What are the most common movement disorders?

Common movement disorders include: Ataxia — nervous system damage leading to loss of muscle control Dystonia — abnormal muscle contractions that cause parts of the body to twist Essential tremor — involuntary movement of part of the body, commonly the hands Huntington’s disease — loss of nerve cells in the brain responsible for voluntary movements and other functions Parkinson’s disease — loss or damage to nerve cells in the brain that help control movement

Movement Disorders

father with movement disorder walking outside with his son

Ochsner Health offers care for movement disorders such as Parkinson’s disease, dystonia, essential tremor or Tourette syndrome in Jefferson, Lafayette, Covington and Raceland, Louisiana. Movement disorders are neurological conditions that affect how the body moves, causing symptoms like shaking, muscle stiffness or spasms, and slowed or difficult movement.

At the Ochsner Neuroscience Institute, our Movement Disorders Program is dedicated to helping people manage these conditions and live fuller, more active lives. We offer personalized care and a wide range of treatment options designed to improve mobility, comfort and independence.

Parkinson’s disease may run in families. About 15–20% of people with Parkinson’s have a close relative who also has, or once had, the condition.

Ochsner offers advanced, compassionate care using the latest treatments, including:

MRI-guided focused ultrasound, a non-invasive treatment for essential tremor
Botox therapy for spasticity, dystonia and blepharospasm
Deep brain stimulation, a neurosurgical operation that involves the placement of a thin wire into specific areas of the brain, to treat Parkinson’s disease, essential tremor and dystonia
- Our staff has performed more than 300 deep brain stimulation procedures, improving the symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease, Essential Tremor and Dystonia.
Continuous infusion (pump) treatment for Parkinson’s Disease
Interdisciplinary clinic for people with Huntington’s Disease. The Clinic has been named a Center of Excellence by the Huntington's Disease Society of America and is the only such clinic in Louisiana.

Ochsner’s Movement Disorders program offers the most advanced treatment and management of these conditions, including:

Highly trained specialists
- The physicians on staff at Ochsner’s Movement Disorders program are fellowship-trained with years of experience in their field.
An experienced team
- Ochsner has performed more deep brain stimulation procedures than any other program in the state of Louisiana.
Diagnostic expertise
- The specialists on staff are experts in diagnosing your movement disorder correctly — the first time.
Therapy programs for Parkinson’s patients
- An Ochsner care plan goes beyond just medicine to take a more holistic approach.
- About 15 to 20 percent of people with Parkinson's disease have relatives who have or have had the disease.

Parkinson’s disease
Normal pressure hydrocephalus
Essential tremor
Torticollis
Tourette syndrome
Huntington’s disease
Gait disturbance or balance problems
Ataxia
Spasticity
Dystonia

To refer a patient:

Call the Clinic Concierge at 504-842-7436 or 1-855-312-4190.

The Clinic Concierge assists with getting copies of patient records and scheduling clinic appointments.
The Clinic Concierge team can also capture your preference for receiving post visit follow-up from the patient's appointment.

No matter how a movement disorder affects you, our goal is to manage the symptoms to help you adapt and thrive. Your treatment plan will depend on the type of movement disorder, your overall health and your goals, among other factors. Some movement disorders run in families or are linked to gene changes. As a result, we may use genetic information to inform your care.

We offer a wide range of treatments, including some of the most advanced therapies available anywhere. A key example is deep brain stimulation, or DBS. With this treatment, a neurosurgeon places wires called electrodes in the brain and a neurostimulator in your upper chest. The neurostimulator sends electrical signals to the brain, interfering with signals that cause certain movement disorder symptoms. DBS may be an option for some patients with movement disorders, including Parkinson’s disease and essential tremor.

Ochsner has the longest-running DBS program in our region. We’ve performed more than 500 DBS implantations. We offer multiple DBS systems, targets for stimulation in the brain and neurostimulator implantation sites. In short, we customize this treatment to fit each patient’s needs. In the past, patients were awake for DBS, but we offer an MRI-guided version of the procedure that allows implantation to take place while they’re asleep.

Other treatments available through our program include:

Botox therapy — injections of nerve-blocking medication for dystonia and other movement disorders
Continuous infusion therapy for Parkinson’s disease, which uses a pump to infuse medication into the body throughout the day
Occupational therapy
Physical therapy

Report any side effects of treatment to your doctors so they can create a plan to manage them.

Coming in July 2026

Focused ultrasound is a non-invasive treatment for essential tremor in the arms and hands, especially for patients who don’t respond to medication. Using MRI-guided focused ultrasound technology, sound waves precisely target areas deep in the brain, creating a small lesion to reduce tremors. The procedure requires no incisions, and most patients experience immediate symptom relief and can go home the same day.

Also known as high-frequency focused ultrasound (HiFU), the treatment is performed in an MRI machine. Concentrated ultrasound waves generate heat to ablate the brain area causing tremors. Patients remain awake during the procedure, allowing surgeons to monitor tremor reduction and neurological function in real time.

For more information, please email us at fus@ochsner.org or call us at 504-842-2247.

FAQs

Common movement disorders include:

Ataxia — nervous system damage leading to loss of muscle control
Dystonia — abnormal muscle contractions that cause parts of the body to twist
Essential tremor — involuntary movement of part of the body, commonly the hands
Huntington’s disease — loss of nerve cells in the brain responsible for voluntary movements and other functions
Parkinson’s disease — loss or damage to nerve cells in the brain that help control movement

Symptoms vary widely, depending on the type of movement disorder. Some general symptoms include uncontrollable movement, poor coordination or balance, tremor and muscle stiffness.

Some movement disorders, including Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and Tourette syndrome, can occur alongside mental health conditions.

MRI-guided focused ultrasound (FUS) is a groundbreaking, incision-free treatment for essential tremor. Using advanced MRI imaging, FUS precisely targets the small area of the brain responsible for tremors. By directing focused ultrasound waves to this spot, the treatment ablates the affected area without the need for surgery, minimizing risks like infection. This innovative approach offers a safe, effective way to reduce tremor symptoms and improve quality of life. Ochsner Health will offer these ultrasounds starting in July 2026.

As with any medical procedure, MRI-guided focused ultrasound carries some risks, though clinical studies have shown it to be a safe treatment option. Many patients are able to go home the same day. Common side effects include numbness or tingling, imbalance, gait disturbances, unsteadiness, sensory loss, and temporary or, in rare cases, permanent muscle weakness.

For more information and availability, please email us at fus@ochsner.org or call us at 504-842-2247.