Essential tremor versus Intention tremor

[usmlesuccess]

What is the difference between an action tremor and intention tremor in terms of the physical exam, not key words. It seems like both conditions are associated with actions of some sort that eventually leads to this tremor. Can someone clarify?

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[loveoforganic]

You said essential tremor in the title and action tremor in the post - I'm not familiar with the latter term, but I'll assume they're the same thing.

I remember essential tremor as a tremor that has more or less the same amplitude throughout the movement, while an intention tremor worsens as you try to refine the movement (e.g. trying to touch your nose - as you get close to the nose, the amplitude of the tremor increases)

 

[usmlesuccess]

thanks loveoforganic. What I meant is that both of these tremors have to do with performing certain actions, whereas a resting tremor of parkinson's does not require you to perform any action to see the tremor.

 

[Go Ducks]

Depending on a person, an essential tremor can happen at rest as well, though for some people it is worse with movement. It is a genetic thing where the person is just really, really shaky. For some people, their voice even shakes. It is a low-level constant shaking.

Here's a bad case. You can see that her head is shaking even when she's just sitting still, while her hand shakes as she moves it and while it is at rest:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jcb3rwytYcA

Here's another video that shows pretty much the same thing but with a different patient:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qk_d1iqFrRw

With an intention tremor, you would not see the person's whole body shaking like that.

Sometimes an intention tremor and essential tremor can look a lot alike, if not exactly alike. The real difference between the two is the origin. Essential tremors have a poorly understood cause that is highly genetic and inheritable. The people live with the tremor for the rest of their lives but it does not shorten their life. It is it's own separate disease. Intention tremors are specifically from cerebellar dysfunction, which can be from any number of diseases. In this way, an essential tremor is a diagnosis while an intentional tremor is just a symptom.

 

[ohyeahbaby]

can someone please give an example?

for example that person you're asking to touch their nose. If they had an intention tremor they would start shaking more and more as they got closer to the tip of their nose? On the other hand, the person with essential tremor will be shaking but will not change the way he is shaking at all?

very random Q: the dude with intention tremor: will he be able to touch the tip of his nose on his first try then? what about the other dude with essential tremor? or does this have nothing to do with anything we're talking about?

 

[usmlesuccess]

I think the key is that in most questions they give a history that there is some kind of tremor in the family. Since it is autosomal dominant, you would know that its an essential tremor.

 

[futuredoctor10]

I think the key is that in most questions they give a history that there is some kind of tremor in the family. Since it is autosomal dominant, you would know that its an essential tremor.

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