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Methods to Quantify Pharmacologically Induced Alterations in Motor Function in Human Incomplete SCI
Published on: April 18, 2011
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No exaggerated tremor severity perception in functional tremor
Anne-Catherine M L Huys1, Patrick Haggard2, Kailash P Bhatia3
1Department of Clinical and Movement Neurosciences, University College London Queen Square Institute of Neurology, 33 Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK. anne-catherine.huys.15@alumni.ucl.ac.uk.
Journal of Neurology
|July 20, 2022
Summary
People with functional tremor do not exaggerate their symptoms. This study found no difference in subjective versus objective tremor severity, suggesting attention, not exaggeration, explains symptom changes.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Neuroscience
- Psychiatry
Background:
- Functional neurological disorder (FND) symptoms are often perceived as constant and severe, sometimes leading to interpretations of exaggeration or fabrication.
- This perception can be influenced by symptom reporting and clinical examination dynamics.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the accuracy of symptom perception and reporting in functional tremor.
- To directly compare subjective and objective measures of tremor severity in FND, organic tremor, and healthy controls.
Main Methods:
- Direct comparison of subjective and objective tremulousness during reaching movements.
- Inclusion of participants with functional action tremor, organic action tremor, and healthy controls.
- Utilized identical measures for subjective and objective assessments, including real-time perceptual tasks and retrospective reports.
Main Results:
- No significant differences were found between subjective and objective tremor severity in any group (functional tremor, organic tremor, controls).
- This held true for both immediate (real-time) and near-time (retrospective) reporting conditions.
Conclusions:
- Individuals with functional tremor do not perceive or report their tremor with exaggeration compared to organic tremor or healthy individuals.
- Attentional mechanisms, rather than symptom exaggeration, are proposed as a more plausible explanation for symptom exacerbation in FND.
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