Tremor News and Research

Latest Tremor News and Research

DaTscan aids doctors in diagnosing patients with Parkinson's disease

Fifty thousand to 60,000 new cases of Parkinson's disease are diagnosed in the United States each year. Central DuPage Hospital (CDH) in Winfield, Ill., is among the first medical centers in North America to be using a new technology called DaTscan, an imaging tool that aids doctors in diagnosing patients who demonstrate Parkinsonian symptoms, like Parkinson's disease.

29 Sep 2011

IUPUI develops mathematical model of brain's neural circuitry

Researchers from the School of Science at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis have developed a mathematical model of the brain's neural circuitry that may provide a better understanding of how and why information is not transmitted correctly in the brains of Parkinson's disease patients. This knowledge may eventually help scientists and clinicians correct these misfires.

28 Sep 2011

NINDS award to fund studies of Arizonans with Parkinson's disease

The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) announced this week an $8 million, five-year grant to support a "National Brain and Tissue Resource for Parkinson's Disease and Related Disorders", awarded to Banner Sun Health Research Institute (BSHRI) and Mayo Clinic Arizona.

26 Sep 2011

New research reveals how brain devotes time to reflect on tough choices

Take your time. Hold your horses. Sleep on it. When people must decide between arguably equal choices, they need time to deliberate. In the case of people undergoing deep brain stimulation (DBS) for Parkinson's disease, that process sometimes doesn't kick in, leading to impulsive behavior. New research into why that happens has led scientists to a detailed explanation of how the brain devotes time to reflect on tough choices.

26 Sep 2011

InSightec's ExAblate Neuro system may treat chronic brain disorders

InSightec Ltd., the global leader in MR guided Focused Ultrasound (MRgFUS) technology, announced today that its investigational ExAblate(R) Neuro system has been used in clinical studies to treat 30 patients suffering from chronic neurological disorders.

22 Sep 2011

Henry Ford Hospital performs DBS procedure inside iMRI to treat Parkinson's

Henry Ford Hospital became the third hospital in the United States to perform a Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) procedure inside an Intraoperative Magnetic Resonance Imaging scanner, or iMRI.

20 Sep 2011

Microvascular compression syndrome may cause Parkinson's

A potentially treatable blood vessel abnormality in the brain may be the cause of Parkinson's Disease in some patients, according to a study published today in the journal Neurology International by a team of leading physicians and neuroscientists at Pittsburgh's Allegheny General Hospital.

8 Sep 2011

Dysregulated neuronal RNA transport may cause Fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome

SUNY Downstate scientist Ilham Muslimov, MD, PhD, along with senior author Henri Tiedge, PhD, professor of physiology and pharmacology and of neurology, published a study suggesting that cellular dysregulation associated with certain neurodegenerative disorders may result from molecular competition in neuronal RNA transport pathways.

8 Sep 2011

DaTscan allows doctors to differentiate Parkinson's from other movement disorders

Thanks to a new diagnostic imaging technique, physicians now have an objective test to evaluate patients for parkinsonian syndromes, such as Parkinson's disease. Northwestern Memorial Hospital is among the first institutions in the country to offer DaTscan-, the only FDA-approved imaging agent for assessment of movement disorders.

26 Aug 2011

Risk of Parkinson's disease increases with traumatic brain injury and exposure to pesticide paraquat

Traumatic brain injury has entered the public's consciousness as the silent, signature wound brought back by many of our military warriors from Iraq and Afghanistan. But such injuries don't only happen in warfare, they happen to civilians too. Think car crashes, a slip and fall, two football players colliding helmet to helmet.

22 Aug 2011

Scientists artificially grow brain cells from Parkinson's patients to find treatment

The UK's population is ageing and with it comes an increased risk of developing age-related diseases such as Parkinson's. About 70% of dopamine producing brain cells will have been lost by the time a sufferer visits the doctor, with symptoms that include difficulties with movement and a resting tremor. A progressive neurodegenerative disease, Parkinson's affects about 120,000 people in the UK.

18 Aug 2011

Scientists examine relationship between REM sleep behaviour disorders, Parkinson's disease

Patients suffering REM sleep behaviour disorders dream nightmares in which they are attacked and pursued, with the particularity that they express them by screaming, crying, punching and kicking while sleeping.

30 Jul 2011

New candidate gene for human benign childhood epilepsies

A new epilepsy gene, LGI2, has been found in the Lagotto Romagnolo dogs, known from their gift for truffle hunting. The gene discovery made by Professor Hannes Lohi and his research group at the University of Helsinki and the Folkhälsan Rsearch Center offers a new candidate gene for human benign childhood epilepsies characterized by seizure remission.

28 Jul 2011

Fragile X syndrome study to reveal more

Fragile X syndrome is the most common inherited cause of intellectual disability in the world. Medical experts, including the Mater Hospital's Dr Helen Heussler, are today launching a new push to uncover the secrets of a disorder that affects a child born in Australia every week. Fragile X is passed from parent carriers who often exhibit very few symptoms. Estimates suggest more than 100,000 Australians either carry the gene mutation that causes Fragile X or have the syndrome, yet the vast majority have not been diagnosed, according to the Fragile X Association of Australia.

25 Jul 2011

Fluoride supplements neither safe or effective

Sodium fluoride supplements "have not been found by FDA to be safe or effective," according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine's website, reports the New York State Coalition Opposed to Fluoridation, Inc..

25 Jul 2011

Elite task force provides insights and guidance on deep brain stimulation for dystonia

Neurologist Michele Tagliati, MD, director of the Movement Disorders Program at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, served on an elite international task force commissioned by the Movement Disorder Society to provide insights and guidance on deep brain stimulation for dystonia, an uncommon condition that causes sustained, sometimes crippling muscle contractions.

22 Jul 2011

Deep brain stimulation benefits people with Parkinson's, essential tremor

Tom Keilen couldn't grab a glass of water without spilling it all over himself. Plagued with uncontrollable tremors at just 57 years old, the Michigan resident was fighting a battle against an aggressive case of Parkinson's disease.

21 Jul 2011

MR-guided focused ultrasound effective for treating essential tremor

The last ten years have been challenging for Billy R. Williams of Fort Valley, Virginia. The former Pentagon employee, who survived the 9/11 terrorist attack, has suffered from essential tremor, a progressive and debilitating neurological disorder.

30 Jun 2011

Scientific evidence is key driver for gaining reimbursement for MR-guided focused ultrasound

Medical researchers have a critical role to play in gaining optimal health insurance reimbursement for MR-guided focused ultrasound. As Susan Klees, Director of Patient Access for the Focused Ultrasound Surgery Foundation, reports, "Scientific evidence is the key driver for reimbursement, and it all begins with the way studies are designed. Today, research priorities must be grounded in sound science as well as the realities of the marketplace."

24 Jun 2011

GTRI develops novel iPhone application for patients with Parkinson's

Researchers at the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) have developed a novel iPhone application that may enable persons with Parkinson's disease and certain other neurological conditions to use the ubiquitous devices to collect data on hand and arm tremors and relay the results to medical personnel.

24 Jun 2011