A Positron Emission Tomography Study of Cerebral Activation Associated With Essential and Writing Tremor

A Transdiagnostic Structural Brain Signature of Parkinsonian and Essential Tremor

“…Our findings are in line with previous studies using various imaging and electrophysiological methods linking tremor to dysfunction within the cerebellothalamic system and interconnected regions in PD 12–14 and ET 28–30 . Previous structural MRI studies found smaller thalamic and cerebellar volumes in ET compared to non-subtyped PD patients 31, 32 .…”

A Transdiagnostic Structural Brain Signature of Parkinsonian and Essential Tremor

“…Our findings are in line with previous studies using various imaging and electrophysiological methods linking tremor to dysfunction within the cerebellothalamic system and interconnected regions in PD 12–14 and ET 28–30 . Previous structural MRI studies found smaller thalamic and cerebellar volumes in ET compared to non-subtyped PD patients 31, 32 .…”

Cerebral activation pattern in primary writing tremor

“…Moreover, ethanol in alcohol responsive patients with essential tremor19 and stimulation of the contralateral ventral intermediate nucleus (Vim) of the thalamus in patients with unilateral tremor dominant Parkinson's disease32 have led to a significant decrease of previously bilaterally increased cerebellar blood flow. In support of the results of our study a bilateral cerebellar activation has also been described in a previous PET study in patients with writing tremor holding a pen to a paper 24. Therefore a bilateral hyperactivity of the cerebellar networks seems to play an important part also in the pathophysiology of writing tremor.…”

“…18 24 Particularly, the marked biparietal activation is in line with the hypothesis of writing tremor being a focal variant of essential tremor. This hypothesis is further underscored by various clinical findings such as similar frequencies in both conditions, and the response to propanolol, alcohol, and Vim stimulation 1…”

Altered brain network measures in patients with primary writing tremor

“…As discussed above, studies on healthy volunteers by Horovitz et al [20] and Katanoda et al [21] have also revealed altered activation in vermis and ipsilateral cerebellum, respectively, while performing writing tasks. Our results also get support from a PET-based study by Wills et al in which patients with PWT had abnormal increase in the activity of bilateral cerebellar hemisphere and vermis [24]. We also observed significant negative correlation of the clustering coefficient in bilateral medial cerebellum with the severity of the tremor, which further consolidates the implications of altered connectivity of medial cerebellum in PWT.…”

A Transdiagnostic Structural Brain Signature of Parkinsonian and Essential Tremor

“…Our findings are in line with previous studies using various imaging and electrophysiological methods linking tremor to dysfunction within the cerebellothalamic system and interconnected regions in PD 12–14 and ET 28–30 . Previous structural MRI studies found smaller thalamic and cerebellar volumes in ET compared to non-subtyped PD patients 31, 32 .…”

Cerebral activation pattern in primary writing tremor

“…Moreover, ethanol in alcohol responsive patients with essential tremor19 and stimulation of the contralateral ventral intermediate nucleus (Vim) of the thalamus in patients with unilateral tremor dominant Parkinson's disease32 have led to a significant decrease of previously bilaterally increased cerebellar blood flow. In support of the results of our study a bilateral cerebellar activation has also been described in a previous PET study in patients with writing tremor holding a pen to a paper 24. Therefore a bilateral hyperactivity of the cerebellar networks seems to play an important part also in the pathophysiology of writing tremor.…”

“…18 24 Particularly, the marked biparietal activation is in line with the hypothesis of writing tremor being a focal variant of essential tremor. This hypothesis is further underscored by various clinical findings such as similar frequencies in both conditions, and the response to propanolol, alcohol, and Vim stimulation 1…”

Altered brain network measures in patients with primary writing tremor

“…As discussed above, studies on healthy volunteers by Horovitz et al [20] and Katanoda et al [21] have also revealed altered activation in vermis and ipsilateral cerebellum, respectively, while performing writing tasks. Our results also get support from a PET-based study by Wills et al in which patients with PWT had abnormal increase in the activity of bilateral cerebellar hemisphere and vermis [24]. We also observed significant negative correlation of the clustering coefficient in bilateral medial cerebellum with the severity of the tremor, which further consolidates the implications of altered connectivity of medial cerebellum in PWT.…”

A Transdiagnostic Structural Brain Signature of Parkinsonian and Essential Tremor

“…Our findings are in line with previous studies using various imaging and electrophysiological methods linking tremor to dysfunction within the cerebellothalamic system and interconnected regions in PD 12–14 and ET 28–30 . Previous structural MRI studies found smaller thalamic and cerebellar volumes in ET compared to non-subtyped PD patients 31, 32 .…”

Cerebral activation pattern in primary writing tremor

“…Moreover, ethanol in alcohol responsive patients with essential tremor19 and stimulation of the contralateral ventral intermediate nucleus (Vim) of the thalamus in patients with unilateral tremor dominant Parkinson's disease32 have led to a significant decrease of previously bilaterally increased cerebellar blood flow. In support of the results of our study a bilateral cerebellar activation has also been described in a previous PET study in patients with writing tremor holding a pen to a paper 24. Therefore a bilateral hyperactivity of the cerebellar networks seems to play an important part also in the pathophysiology of writing tremor.…”

“…18 24 Particularly, the marked biparietal activation is in line with the hypothesis of writing tremor being a focal variant of essential tremor. This hypothesis is further underscored by various clinical findings such as similar frequencies in both conditions, and the response to propanolol, alcohol, and Vim stimulation 1…”

Altered brain network measures in patients with primary writing tremor

“…As discussed above, studies on healthy volunteers by Horovitz et al [20] and Katanoda et al [21] have also revealed altered activation in vermis and ipsilateral cerebellum, respectively, while performing writing tasks. Our results also get support from a PET-based study by Wills et al in which patients with PWT had abnormal increase in the activity of bilateral cerebellar hemisphere and vermis [24]. We also observed significant negative correlation of the clustering coefficient in bilateral medial cerebellum with the severity of the tremor, which further consolidates the implications of altered connectivity of medial cerebellum in PWT.…”