Advances in clinical management of post-transplant movement disorders

ZHAO Léa , DAI Ruolian , JEONG Seong Ho , WANG Gang

Journal of Neurology and Neurorehabilitation ›› 2026, Vol. 22 ›› Issue (1) : 7-11.

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Journal of Neurology and Neurorehabilitation ›› 2026, Vol. 22 ›› Issue (1) : 7-11. DOI: 10.12022/jnnr.2025-0241
Review

Advances in clinical management of post-transplant movement disorders

  • ZHAO Léa1 , DAI Ruolian1 , JEONG Seong Ho2 , WANG Gang1
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Abstract

Movement disorders are one of common neurological complications following solid organ transplantation. They encompass various clinical manifestations, including tremor, myoclonus, and chorea, which significantly impact patients' quality of life. Neurological complications following solid organ transplantation are generally observed at a relatively high overall incidence, with variations across different types of organ transplants. Among these, neurological complications are relatively more common after liver transplantation, which is associated with multiple factors such as hepatic encephalopathy. Although the underlying mechanisms remain incompletely understood, these complications are thought to arise from neurotoxicity from immunosuppressive drugs, metabolic disturbances, and surgical factors. Post-transplant movement disorders often coexist with multiple symptoms, necessitating an active search for underlying causes, ruling out possibilities such as ischemic-hypoxic encephalopathy, infection, or stroke. If movement disorders occur in isolation, the neurotoxicity of medications, such as immunosuppressive agents, should be considered first. Treatment involves etiological management (optimizing the immunosuppressive regimen) and symptomatic therapy (such as antiepileptic drugs, clonazepam, or botulinum toxin injections). With timely intervention, most cases achieve favorable outcomes with a good prognosis. This review focuses on the epidemiology, clinical manifestations, associated symptoms, diagnosis and differential diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of involuntary movements following liver, kidney, and heart transplantation, aiming to serve as a clinical reference.

Key words

Organ transplantation / Tremor / Myoclonus / Post-pump chorea

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ZHAO Léa , DAI Ruolian , JEONG Seong Ho , WANG Gang. Advances in clinical management of post-transplant movement disorders[J]. Journal of Neurology and Neurorehabilitation. 2026, 22(1): 7-11 https://doi.org/10.12022/jnnr.2025-0241

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China(82271462)
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