A clinical test for the alcohol sensitivity of essential tremor.
BACKGROUND
The objective of the study was to develop a simple diagnostic test for alcohol sensitivity of essential tremor patients. Here we describe the controlled measurements of tremor severity after alcohol ingestion and the practicability of using it as a home test.


METHODS
Ten patients were tested for alcohol sensitivity under controlled conditions in the laboratory (blood alcohol, quantitative tremor recordings, modified Fahn scale, visual analog scale, Archimedes spirals), and 15 patients were instructed to perform an alcohol test at home (visual analog scale, Archimedes spirals) following an adapted dosage of alcohol.


RESULTS
The time course of the antitremor effect showed significant improvement of up to 50% in both groups for all the outcome parameters. Tremor deteriorated after 3 hours. A quarter of the patients noticed the alcohol effect for the first time during the test.


CONCLUSIONS
Alcohol is an effective drug for essential tremor. Its effect is only short-lived and exhibits a rebound after > 3 hours and the next morning. We propose this essential tremor home test as a diagnostic tool to confirm the alcohol sensitivity of essential tremor.
Department of Neurology, Christian-Albrechts-University, Kiel, Germany.
Karina
K
Knudsen
Delia
D
Lorenz
Günther
G
Deuschl
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000438:Alcohols / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D020329:Essential Tremor / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010147:Pain Measurement; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
D000438:Alcohols