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Updated: Feb 15, 2026

MRI-guided Focused Ultrasound Thalamotomy for Patients with Medically-refractory Essential Tremor
Published on: December 13, 2017
[Genetics of tremor]
1Klinik für Neurologie, Universitätsklinikum Schleswig-Holstein, Campus Kiel, Christian-Albrechts-Universität Kiel, Arnold-Heller-Str. 3, 24105, Kiel, Deutschland. g.kuhlenbaeumer@neurologie.uni-kiel.de.
Background:
Tremor is a symptom of many diseases and can constitute a disease of its own: essential tremor.
Objective:
The genetics of essential tremor and differential diagnosis of monogenic diseases with the symptom tremor.
Material And Methods:
Literature search and search of clinical genetics databases, e.g. OMIM, GeneReviews, MDSGene and the German Neurological Society (DGN) guidelines.
Results:
The genetics of essential tremor remain unresolved in spite of large, adequately powered studies. Tremor is a symptom of differential diagnostic value in many movement disorders. A slight tremor might have been missed or not reported in many descriptions of movement disorders.
Conclusion:
Progress in the genetics of essential tremor probably requires a more detailed phenotyping allowing stratification into phenotypically defined subgroups. Tremor should always be included in the examination and description of movement disorders even if tremor is not a cardinal symptom. Tremor might be helpful in the differential diagnosis of hereditary dystonia, hereditary ataxia, spastic paraplegia and other movement disorders.
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