Has anyone come across tremor type & frequency/testing procedure info for PD and other disorders. Specifically what is tested and how, frequency of thumb, hand etc.

Thanks for any info.

This is a really good question-I've wondered about this since I was initially diagnosed with ET. Anyway, I learned that there are four recognized types of Parkinsonian tremor. -Laura

See the following link:

http://www.rewritetomorrow.eu.com/pd...or-parkinsons/

In the Consensus Statement of the Movement Disorder Society on Tremor 3, four types of Parkinsonian tremor are described:

1. type I – classical Parkinsonian tremor, that is a rest tremor and postural/kinetic tremor at the same frequency, i.e. the rest tremor in this group persisting as a postural tremor
2. type II - rest, postural and kinetic tremors at different frequency
3. type III - pure postural kinetic tremor. This is seen particularly where there is rigidity. This tremor is very similar to the more common ET (See also: Diagnosis)
4. type IV - the monosymptomatic rest tremor, that is a pure tremor at rest which reduces with movement.

Excellent, thanks Laura!

Robert

The tremor info is very interesting...THANK YOU. When I went to a neuro ... he said that I didn't have a "typical PD tremor ". Wonder if he ever heard of all of these? Anyway, he said it might be "ET" and to come back in 3 months, that maybe it would "turn into " PD in the future. All this wonderful info for $240. I will be glad when there is an official blood test or something that is diffinitive diagnosis..then I will have
the test for a confirmation.

Hi,

Yep, I have atypical PD tremor as well...it never even looked like PD until last year. I honestly think that many experienced MDSs monitor our tremor over the course of a few years because all of this is so hard to definitively diagnose. Of course, there are now links between ET and PD. See this thread started a while back http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/sh...ight=essential

and this NY Times article on tremor disorder.

Found this today:
http://books.google.com/books?id=EK0...tremor&f=false
Table 1 - Tremor Frequencies

2.5-5 Hz

3-6 Hz

7-9 Hz

7-12 Hz

12-18 Hz

This is great, thanks! I take it you have an annoying hand tremor too, and one that does not respond great to anti-PD drugs? If you haven't already tried and eliminated treatment with the beta blocker Propranolol, it may be worth trying for tremor control. I have a lengthier thread on this from last week or something if you want more details, but basically I added Propranolol to my PD drug regimen and it pretty much erased any potential break through tremor I always used to have between med dosages. That is I go 12 hours tremor free on it and Sinemet! It's pretty amazing and not sure what is going on but for the time being, I'll take it

Laura

As a musician working occasionally with audio, I've long wondered about tremor frequency and the phenomenon known as phase cancellation. If you take two audio signals of identical frequency and have them occur 180 degrees out of phase with each other, they cancel out the sound. It's how some noise cancellation headphones operate. So if say a parkinson's tremor happens at 4 hz, could one theoretically set up a device that would fire at 4 hz but would be out of phase and thus eliminate the noisy shaking?

Jon

thanks Laura,
As tremor and memory decline are about my only complains , I have been searching for some thing which targets specifically tremor. It is great to know that Propranolol works for you specially I know it is safe ad I used in the past before my pd dianosis for many years to control high pressure. that is in spite of the fact that high pressure drugs generally lower sexual ability for men!
Imad

Hi,

Just wanted to share this resource I found; this text contains the most comprehensive and current information on tremor that I have seen. It covers frequencies, types, and making differential diagnoses.

Most importantly, it lists out several different drugs that have alleviated difficult to treat tremors; many of these drugs are new to me. It also points out that Propanolol is effective in treating PD tremor. Anyway, it might be helpful to make a copy of this page to discuss with your neuros.

Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders edited by J. Jankovic and E. Tolosa PAGE 289 (link goes to other page)

Chapter 24: Tremors: Differential Diagnosis, Pathophysiology, and Therapy