Objective: Analysis of a cohort of patients diagnosed with tremor concerning the epidemiology, clinical features and etiologies.

Background: Tremor is the most common movement disorder in the community and is defined as a rhythmic involuntary oscillatory movement of a body part. It is the most common movement disorder encountered in primary care. Classification of tremors is helpful for accurate diagnosis, prognosis and treatment.

Method: We conducted a descriptive cross-sectional study including patients who were adressed to our departement for tremor between January and February 2021. The diagnosis of tremor is based on clinical information obtained from the history and physical examination. The first step in evaluating a patient with tremor is to categorize the tremor based on its activation condition, topographic distribution, and frequency.

Results: A total of 56 patients were included, out of which 55% were men.  The average age of onset was 64 years. A family history of tremor was found in 30% of patients. The most common causes of tremor were : essential tremor (41%), parkinsonian tremor (25%), drug-induced tremor (13%), metabolic tremor (10%), psychogenic tremor (7%) and enhanced physiologic tremor (4%).

Conclusion: The history and physical examination remain the most important diagnostic tools available to clinicians in identifying and classifying tremor syndromes. A broad and detailed diagnostic workup is crucial to puzzle out the etiology for more and better management.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/my-hands-are-shaking-a-tunisian-cohort-study/