Hi Imad,


Wow! This really hits home! Like you, I am tremor dominant, but I also have a family history of tremor (father and grandfather). Do you find that you have atypical PD things going on as well? I do not have many of the targeted biomarkers like loss of smell or REM Sleep Disorder. I also have atypical PD tremor. I was diagnosed with ET for six years before my tremor even remotely looked like PD.

How about you? Where do things look different or atypical for you? I have read that people who initiially present with ET are 4-5 times more likely to end up with a PD diagnosis later on. This NY Times article, while not scientific, gives a good overview of the similarities and likely ties between ET and PD. I think all this says is that PD is really a syndrome or spectrum disorder and I wonder if ET is a more benign expression of tremor dominant PD. Keep in mind there is also something identified as Benign Tremulous Parkinsonsism too.

In the final analysis, I find this all so frustrating because I think people like us hold answers but not many researchers want to study us. It's too bad because we may hold answers for both medical conditions.

Laura