Essential tremor most common cause of shaky hands
YOUR HEALTH
DR. DONOHUE

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: My wife has nagged me for more than a year to see a doctor because she thought I had Parkinson's disease. My hand shakes when I do things like bring a cup of coffee to my mouth. Then a fellow worker told me my head was bobbing up and down like I was always agreeing with people. I did see the doctor, and it turns out I have essential tremor and that I should learn to live with it. Isn't there something to take for it? -- D.K.

ANSWER: Essential tremor is also called familial tremor, because it runs in families. A child born to a parent with this tremor has a 50 percent chance of developing it sometime during life. It's the most common cause of tremor.

The hands shake when they have to perform a purposeful act, like bringing a cup to the lips, writing, eating or doing demanding, fine tasks like sewing. The head is often affected, and that sets it apart from Parkinson's disease. Even the voice can take on a quavering quality.

One oddity about this tremor is that alcohol can almost always abolish it for a short time. Alcohol isn't a treatment, but the effect of alcohol on the tremor is another piece of evidence pointing to essential tremor.

The tremor might be nothing more than a nuisance, or it might be so severe that it's incapacitating.

There are control medicines: propranolol, primidone and gabapentin. If the tremor is intolerable and medicines aren't effective, surgical procedures like deep brain stimulation usually can quiet it.

Get in touch with the International Essential Tremor Foundation at 888-387-3667 or on the Web at www.essentialtremor. org. You'll find that the foundation can provide you with a wealth of information.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: When it becomes hot enough to use the ceiling fan and air conditioner, I get a cough. The cough stops if I don't use them. Do you think they are the cause? -- L.M.

ANSWER: You make a good case for a cause-and-effect relationship, but I can't tell you why. Perhaps they trigger some idiosyncratic reflex. I don't know what to tell you to do about this.

Dr. Donohue regrets that he is unable to answer individual letters, but he will incorporate them in his column whenever possible. Readers may write him or request an order form of available health newsletters at P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL32853-6475. Readers may also order health newsletters from www.rbmamall.com. 2006 North America Syndicate Inc. All Rights Reserved