treatment for tremors

[Guest guest]

(NOTE: The kind of tremors some of us with CMT have are called

" essential tremor " .~ G)

From the Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune Mon, Jul 5, 2004

Treatments for tremors available

By JENI LEWIS For the Daily Tribune

MARSHFIELD -ÊBy the time Pam Klessig finally went to a neurologist

because her hands and head were continuously shaking, she already had an

idea what the diagnosis might be.

" What happened was my tremors were getting progressively worse, and I

thought I had Parkinson's Disease, " said Klessig, a 46-year-old

elementary school teacher from Eagle River.

She was told she had essential tremor, a neurological movement disorder

that affects 10 million Americans, according to the International

Essential Tremor Foundation.

Researchers anticipate finding better treatments or even a cure for the

disorder within the next decade. Until that time, there are treatment

options available.

" I hesitate to call essential tremor a disease, because for most people,

it's not like a disability. It's certainly not life threatening, " said

Brad Hiner, director of the Movement Disorder Clinic at Marshfield

Clinic. " For individuals it really does interfere with their quality of

life. Simple things like eating, drinking, dressing, shaving and

handwriting are out the window because they shake so bad. "

After 20 years of not being able to control the shaking, and trying to

avoid people asking if she was OK, Klessig had a hard time accepting the

diagnosis.

" I decided I was at least going to go down and confer with the

neurologist (at Marshfield Clinic), " she said. " I still absolutely

positively thought I had Parkinson's Disease. "

The condition affects Americans six times more often than Parkinson's

Disease and can target people of all ages. Treatments include medication

with potential side affects of fatigue and low blood pressure. Or

patients, like Klessig, have the option to undergo surgery called deep

brain stimulation.

In her surgery, Klessig had lead implanted into the thalamus part of her

brain, and wires connecting the lead to two pulse generators installed

in her chest. The pulse generators are run by batteries, which monitor

the movements the thalamus controls.

As many as 1 in 20 people over the age of 40 are affected with essential

tremors, and research is continuously occurring to identify what causes

this disorder.

" We don't know what the cause is; we know where the problem is, " Hiner

said. Anywhere from one-third to one-half of the diagnosed cases will

have a positive family history.

" There is research ongoing trying to identify a chromosome or a gene,

but we're not there yet, " Hiner said. " (Marshfield Clinic) continues to

be involved in a lot of research, more leaning toward Parkinson's

disease. They're similar but they're different (diseases). "

For Klessig, the cure can't come soon enough, even though her surgery

has controlled her tremors to a great degree.

" Because the average American person is ignorant to the essential tremor

condition, they can make some very callous comments, " Klessig said.

" It's given me, in the same respect, a great empathy for those people

who have a disability. "