How Does Alcohol Affect Essential Tremor? Alcohol & Essential Tremor ET

Elderly individuals may need a lower dose (eg, 10 mg twice daily), while for those who are tolerating well, propranolol can be increased up to 240 mg/day in divided doses. Improvement occurs in approximately 50%–60% of the patients, the greatest improvement being for hand tremor, and the least for head or voice tremor. Long-acting preparations of propranolol also have a similar efficacy. Ten to 15 percent of the responders may develop tolerance after a year of treatment.[5] Side effects include light headedness, fatigue, impotence, bradycardia, and reduced blood pressure.

What are the risk factors for essential tremor?

These procedures use different methods to control muscle movements by directly mediating action in the motor regions of the brain. Other interventions have been used to treat essential tremor, the most common of which is botulinum toxin injection. This type of injection paralyzes the muscle and can potentially prevent tremors in the affected muscles. Since several other conditions can cause tremors, your healthcare providers may also consider other possible causes, such as Parkinson’s disease, anxiety, a medication side effect, or drug withdrawal.

Diagnosis and Tests

The tremors occur at a rhythmic, rapid rate and may be more prominent with action than at rest. The severity of your tremors may stay relatively the same or may get worse over time. They might also perform imaging tests to determine whether you have an underlying condition that’s causing your tremors, like a stroke or a tumor. Scientists haven’t found any absolute genetic or environmental causes, and no cellular defect has been linked to the condition. Researchers are working to better understand the underlying brain functions that cause tremor, identify the genetic factors that make individuals more likely to have tremor, and develop new and better treatment options. NINDS, a component of NIH, the leading supporter of biomedical research in the world, is the primary federal funding agency on tremor and other neurological disorders.

Treating tremor

For severe tremors, a stimulating device (deep brain stimulator) surgically implanted in your brain may help. If primidone or propranolol are not effective by themselves, a combination of both may provide relief for some patients. In most people, the condition seems to be passed down from a parent to a child. If your essential tremor alcohol parent has ET, there is a 50% chance you or your children will inherit the gene responsible for the condition. Sometimes, ancillary testing such as brain imaging or genetic testing may help with the diagnosis. If you have ET, you likely have been diagnosed with a tremor that has shown up without any known cause.

When should I see my healthcare provider, or when should I seek care?

If one chooses to consume alcohol, it should be done in a responsible and sensible manner. Complex tremors can have components of more than one type of tremor. The term “essential” is not meant to indicate the tremor’s value. The shaking is an annoyance and can even be debilitating in some cases. The word “essential” is intended to indicate that tremor is the only symptom involved — that it’s the “essence” of the entire problem.

In patients with less disabling tremor, certain behavioral techniques and physical therapy may be useful. The management of a patient with ET includes (a) behavioral techniques and physical therapy, (b) medical therapy, and (c) surgical treatment. The patient should be explained about the disease, the long-term outcome, and what the therapies can achieve. All therapies are essentially symptomatic and will not cure or change the course of the disease. If there is minimal functional disability, the patient need not take treatment. Even if the tremor is controlled by medical therapy, stress and anxiety can increase the symptoms.

Drug- and Metabolic-Induced Tremors

In some cases, this may mean that you need to have some tests to rule out other conditions. You may also be referred to a doctor with a special interest and expertise in the brain and nerves (a neurologist). In essential tremor, the tremor usually begins in one arm or hand. 3 in 10 people with essential tremor have a tremor of the head.

• More than 70% of patients with Parkinson disease have tremor as the presenting feature.
• Sometimes other pharmacologic therapies are used for controlling essential tremor, which may include Neurontin (gabapentin), Topamax (topiramate), or muscle relaxants.
• To be diagnosed with essential tremor, one must first exclude known mimics.
• In some cases, benzodiazepines such as alprazolam or clonazepam might be suggested.
• No signs of tolerance were seen, and most patients with sedation found that this significantly diminished after a six to seven week period.