Quantitative analysis of reduced arm swing frequency in essential tremor.

BACKGROUND

Essential tremor (ET) has recently been accepted as a heterogeneous disorder which may be associated with synuclein pathology or a variety of other genetic disorders.

METHODS

We observed decreased arm swing frequency in 18 of 136 definite ET patients, and recorded the associated arm movements in 18 ET patients and 33 sex- and age-matched healthy controls.

RESULTS

The mean frequency of the right arm (p = 0.047), left arm (p = 0.025) and leg (p = 0.030), and the mean arm/leg frequency on the right side (p = 0.048) were significantly lower in ET patients. The mean frequencies for both arms and legs were significantly lower for the more affected side of the body (p = 0.034 and p = 0.036, respectively).

CONCLUSION

We conclude that ET may be associated with decreased arm and leg swing frequencies, especially on the more affected side of the body.