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#3. Tremors that worsen when
moving hand approaches a target, for example, to pick up a pencil or scratch one's nose. This relatively uncommon pattern is seen with damage to
part of
brain known as
cerebellum, located in
back of
head.
To
extent that
underlying problem can be fixed,
tremor will usually improve as well. So if someone's tremor is due to an overactive thyroid,
tremor will improve when
thyroid problem is corrected. If a tremor is due to Parkinson's disease, then it will get better with medication for this condition. And if medication itself is causing
problem, then a dose-reduction or substitution of another drug might do
trick.
What if an underlying cause is not found, or correction of an underlying problem doesn't make
tremor go away? Treatment might still be available. In
case of tremors most evident with
hands in
air, certain medications might provide meaningful improvement, including primidone (brand name Mysoline), propranolol (Inderal), metoprolol (Lopressor) and gabapentin (Neurontin).
People with anxiety (inner nerves) respond best to anxiety-relieving medications and counseling. But medications that relieve anxiety do not help tremors (outer nerves) much, except to
extent that they make
patient drowsy. This is because all tremors improve with drowsiness. However, being perpetually drowsy is not a favorable trade-off for controlling tremor.
Who should get treated? It's an individual decision. Assuming that underlying problems have already been screened for, symptomatic treatment of inner nerves or outer nerves depends on
answers to two questions:
#1. Does
symptom cause distress? #2. Does
symptom interfere with usual activities?
An affirmative answer to either question means that treatment should be considered.

Gary Cordingley, MD, PhD, is a clinical neurologist, teacher and researcher. For more health-related articles, see his website at: http://www.cordingleyneurology.com