Echopraxia

What is echopraxia?

Echopraxia is mimicking the physical movements or facial expressions of someone else. Echopraxia is automatic and involuntary. It’s also known as echokinesis or echomotism.

For children or people trying to master a new skill, following someone else’s movement is natural and a major part of learning. Maybe you want to practice flipping a pancake in a frying pan or throwing a baseball. Your desire to learn means you’re consciously aware of what your body is doing and moving in a way to repeat what you see for an expected outcome.

In echopraxia, however, you aren’t aware of or meaning to copy movements. Rather, your body just does them. You may wave your hand if you see someone else do it. Maybe you pick up the same object in a store or grimace after watching someone else taste something sour. You might walk in a particular way as someone you saw in a movie or television show.

Echopraxia is a symptom of brain dysfunction and happens with several movement and psychiatric conditions.

How does a provider diagnose echopraxia?

A healthcare provider might suspect echopraxia if you have trouble responding to verbal commands while seeing another action in progress. Your provider may ask you to complete a physical movement while watching them perform an unrelated physical movement.

For example, your provider will tell you to wave your right hand. While they’re telling you to wave your right hand, they’re patting their left hand on their thigh. If you have echopraxia, it’ll be difficult for you to follow the verbal command (wave your right hand) because your body will imitate the physical movement you see (patting your left hand) first.

Your provider might offer other tests and evaluations to learn more about the cause of this symptom and how it affects your body.

What causes echopraxia?

The reason why echopraxia happens isn’t entirely clear to healthcare providers. Research suggests the abnormal functioning of one of the following parts of your brain may contribute to echopraxia:

• Frontal lobe. This area regulates your voluntary movement and executive functioning (self-regulation).
• The mirror neuron system. This is a group of brain cells that helps you imitate actions that you see so you can learn and socialize.

What conditions cause echopraxia?

Echopraxia is a common symptom of conditions like:

• Autism spectrum disorder.
• Catatonia.
• Epilepsy.
• Schizophrenia.
• Tourette syndrome.

How is echopraxia treated?

There isn’t a single proven treatment for echopraxia that works for everyone. Your provider will offer treatment to help you manage the underlying condition that causes this symptom. Treatment helps reduce the frequency and severity of echopraxia movements.

Treatment recommendations might include (but aren’t limited to):

• Psychotherapy like cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).
• Taking medications as directed.

What are the possible complications of not treating echopraxia?

Echopraxia can lead to physical injury if left untreated. You may harm yourself or others with certain movements, especially if you repeat a slapping motion or unintentionally grab an object that’s sharp or too hot to touch. You may move suddenly while standing close to a hard surface, leading to injury.

Reach out to a healthcare provider or emergency services if you experience an injury.

Can echopraxia be prevented?

There’s no known way to prevent echopraxia.

When should echopraxia be treated by a healthcare provider?

If you experience unintentional movements, contact a healthcare provider right away.

If your movements cause injury that’s severe, with bleeding that doesn’t stop or extreme pain, visit the emergency room or contact local emergency services immediately.

What’s the difference: Echopraxia vs. echolalia?

Echopraxia and echolalia are two types of echophenomena (involuntary repetition). Echopraxia is the repetition of movements. Echolalia is the repetition of speech, language and sounds.