Impact of Tremor on Patients With Early Stage Parkinson's Disease

Abstract

Tremor is one of the most visible features of Parkinson's disease (PD), and the majority of PD patients experience tremor during the course of the disease. However, the distress caused by this cardinal motor feature for patients early in the course of their PD is commonly underappreciated. People living with early stage PD often experience intense embarrassment and difficulties due to their tremor that limit social interactions, and tremor frequently interferes with the ability to perform activities of daily living and simple tasks at home and work. Although tremor is primarily managed with medications, both tremor response and satisfaction with medical therapy are highly variable. This review offers an overview of reports of the patient experience of tremor in early stage PD and current management options for this cardinal motor feature.

The advances of Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) for treatment of Parkinson s disease (PD)

“…It includes, in selected cases, the implementation of drug infusion and surgical techniques. In milder forms of motor complications, these can often be controlled with manipulation of L-DOPA dose and the introduction of supplemental therapies such as catechol-O-methyl transferase inhibitors, monoamine oxidase B inhibitors, and dopamine agonists including apomorphine 9 .…”

A-WEAR Bracelet for Detection of Hand Tremor and Bradykinesia in Parkinson’s Patients

“…Bradykinesia is a slowness of movement and is mostly related to muscle weakness, rigid muscles, or tremors. According to [ 3 ], the tremor is one of the most visible and bothersome symptoms of PD patients. Tremor in PD patients creates negative affects and destroys patients’ self-image, sense of security, and well-being, as the patient is not able to write correctly with help of typewriter, fix small things, eat or hold the book for reading.…”

Therapeutic Applications of Botulinum Neurotoxin for Autonomic Symptoms in Parkinson’s Disease: An Updated Review

“…Carbidopa-levodopa improves motor symptoms to a variable extent but does not substantially affect non-motor aspects of the disease [ 7 , 19 , 20 ]. With prolonged use, patients become less responsive to dopaminergic agents and experience a narrowing therapeutic window with side effects such as motor fluctuations, dyskinesias, autonomic nervous system dysfunction, and various neuropsychiatric symptoms [ 7 , 18 , 21 ]. Alternative therapies for PD include dopamine agonists, anticholinergics, monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs), catechol-O-methyl transferase inhibitors (COMTIs), deep brain stimulation, focused ultrasound lesioning, and botulinum neurotoxins [ 2 , 7 , 8 , 22 ].…”