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Published on: December 13, 2017
Oxcarbazepine use in essential tremor
Vidya Raj1, Jacqueline S Landess, Peter R Martin
1Vanderbilt University, Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital, Nashville, TN 37232-8650, USA.
The Annals of Pharmacotherapy
|September 14, 2006
Summary
Oxcarbazepine shows promise for treating essential tremor, offering a potential alternative to propranolol. This case report details significant symptom improvement, suggesting further research is warranted for this neurological disorder.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Pharmacology
Background:
- Essential tremor (ET) is a common neurological disorder.
- Current first-line treatments like propranolol have limitations, including variable pharmacokinetics and suboptimal response in some patients.
- Primidone, another option, carries abuse potential.
Observation:
- A patient with essential tremor inadequately managed by propranolol experienced significant tremor reduction with oxcarbazepine.
- The patient also had a history of substance abuse and neuropathic pain.
- Oxcarbazepine was initiated for neuropathic pain, leading to unexpected improvement in tremor symptoms.
Findings:
- Oxcarbazepine treatment resulted in a clinically significant reduction in essential tremor symptoms.
- The patient reported decreased pain scores concurrently with tremor improvement.
- This represents the first reported case of oxcarbazepine effectively treating essential tremor.
Implications:
- Oxcarbazepine may offer a novel therapeutic option for essential tremor.
- Advantages include a favorable tolerability profile and lack of abuse potential compared to existing treatments.
- Further clinical trials are necessary to validate these preliminary findings and explore oxcarbazepine's efficacy in a broader patient population.
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