Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate non-motor symptoms in essential tremor (ET) and compare those to healthy controls (HCs).

Background: ET is a common movement disorder characterized by tremor. In addition to motor symptoms, also non-motor symptoms have been reported among ET patients.  Previous studies have identified that particularly depression, anxiety and cognitive impairment may be common in ET patients.

Method: 47 ET patients and 40 HCs were evaluated for non-motor symptoms. The evaluation included Non-Motor Symptoms Scale (NMSS), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), and Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI). Each subject was scanned using [¹²³I]FP-CIT SPECT. Dopamine transporter binding was normal in each case.

Results: ET patients had higher non-motor symptom burden in NMSS total score (p<0.001), MMSE score (p=0.024), BDI score (p<0.001) and BAI score (p<0.001). All NMSS subscores except for perception and gastrointestinal scores were higher in ET patients compared to HCs (p<0.005).

Conclusion: ET patients have considerable non-motor symptom burden compared to HCs. Clinicians should be aware of these symptoms and treat them accordingly.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/non-motor-symptom-characteristics-in-patients-with-essential-tremor/