Abstract
A 17-year-old boy with peculiar movement of head, hands and trunk with rhythmic oscillation, 1to 2 per second forward and backward was reported. This tic-like movement said to have developed after he has suffered from an unknown severe febrile illness. On pneumoencephalogram striking enlargement of lateral ventricles and communicating cavum septi pellucidi were demonstrated. The boy made a remarkable recovery, following a right ventriculoauriculostomy with insertion of a Pudenz valve. Hence, the bobbing tremor might be considered to be nonspecific manifestations of hydrocephalus which presumably causes pressure upon basal ganglia or other extrapyramidal structures. Of clinical interest is an association with psychopathic tendency such as freque nt vagrancy, confabn tendency, collectomania and emotional instability which was not found in the previous cases. These personality changes might be considered from the same viewpoints as the bobbing tremor in which disturbance o f basal ganglia seems to play an important role. The bobble-head doll syndrome is a peculiar neuropathlogical disorder which seems to be one of the extrapyramidal disturbances, but this bobbing tremor is a unique one; the head bobbing movement disappears or at least markedly decreases, following surgical relief of hydrocephalus.
