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A noninvasive handheld assistive device to accommodate essential tremor: a pilot study.

ABSTRACT: We explored whether a noninvasive handheld device using Active Cancellation of Tremor (ACT) technology could stabilize tremor-induced motion of a spoon in individuals with essential tremor (ET).Fifteen ET subjects (9 men, 6 women) performed 3 tasks with the ACT device turned on and off. Tremor severity was rated with the Fahn-Tolosa-Marin Tremor Rating Scale (TRS). Subjective improvement was rated by subjects with the Clinical Global Impression Scale (CGI-S). Tremor amplitude was measured using device-embedded accelerometers in 11 subjects.TRS scores improved with ACT on (versus off) in all 3 tasks: holding (1.00?±?0.76 vs. 0.27?±?0.70; P?=?0.016), eating (1.47?±?1.06 vs. 0.13?±?0.64; P?=?0.001), and transferring (1.33?±?0.82 vs. 0.27?±?0.59; P?=?0.001). CGI-S improved with eating and transferring, but not the holding task. Accelerometer measurements demonstrated 71% to 76% reduction in tremor with the ACT device on.This noninvasive handheld ACT device can reduce tremor amplitude and severity for eating and transferring tasks in individuals with ET.

SUBMITTER: Pathak A

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4156033 | biostudies-literature | 2014 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:Essential tremor (ET) is among the most common neurological diseases and it often runs in families. How knowledgeable ET patients and their families are about their disease has been the subject of surprisingly little scholarship.To fill this gap in knowledge, we administered a comprehensive 32-item survey (i.e., questions about etiology, pathophysiology, symptoms and signs, natural history, and treatments) to 427 participants, including 76 ET probands, 74 affected relatives (AFRs), 238 unaffected relatives, and 39 spouses of unaffected relatives, all of whom were participating in two ET family studies. We hypothesized that there would be gaps in knowledge about ET and furthermore, that probands and AFRs would be the most knowledgeable, followed by unaffected relatives and then spouses of unaffected relatives, who would be the least knowledgeable.Overall, ET patients lacked knowledge about their disease. Nearly one-third of probands answered "yes" or "do not know" to the question, "is ET the same or different from the type of tremor that many normal people can get when they become old and frail?" A similar proportion did not know whether children could get ET or they responded "no." Nearly one-fourth of affecteds (i.e., probands and AFRs) did not know whether or to what degree (e.g., very well, moderately well, not well) the symptoms of ET could be medically controlled, and 38.0% either reported that there was no brain surgery for ET or reported that they did not know. Nearly 17% of affecteds did not endorse genes as a cause for ET, which was surprising given the fact that this was a family study of ET. Probands and AFRs were the most knowledgeable, followed by unaffected relatives. Spouses of unaffected relatives were the least knowledgeable.We targeted a large group of ET patients and their families, as this group is perhaps most likely to be informed about the disease. ET patients and their AFRs were more knowledgeable about the features of ET than their family members without ET. Overall, however, knowledge of ET was very limited and this lack of knowledge encompassed all aspects of the disease including its underlying causes, the nature of the symptoms and signs, its natural history and its treatment. Further ET awareness education and programs targeting both families of ET patients and the public would help alleviate this gap in knowledge.

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A noninvasive handheld assistive device to accommodate essential tremor: a pilot study.

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