TREMOR

April 22, 2009

Tremor is a rhythmic muscle movement produced by the involuntary oscillations of one or more parts of the body. Tremor in the limbs usually affects both sides of the body. The causes of tremor range from drugs to diseases which in turn move to movement disorders. Some drugs which cause temporary tremor include anti-depressants, beta-adrenergic agonists, mood stabilizers, thyroid drugs, caffeine etc. Other causes include alcohol withdrawal, stroke, fever and hypoglycemia. Two movement disorders causing permanent tremor are Parkinson’s disease, a progressive degenerative neurological disease and essential tremor, a non-degenerative disease, affecting four million to six million people. Although not fatal, essential tremor can become increasingly disabling in performing daily living skills such as writing, eating and drinking. Most tremors occur in the hands. Tremor may occur at any age but is seen most common in middle-aged and older people. It affects men and women equally. It can be determined primarily during action or at rest. Thirty years ago, a surgical procedure called thalamotomy was introduced to control tremor. This technique destroys the region of the brain responsible for tremor. In ensuing years, drugs were used to control tremor although they prove effective in less than half of the patients. See more about the treatments for tremor in the next post