Reproducibility of cerebellar involvement as quantified by consensus structural MRI biomarkers in advanced essential tremor.

Essential tremor (ET) is the most prevalent movement disorder with poorly understood etiology. Some neuroimaging studies report cerebellar involvement whereas others do not. This discrepancy may stem from underpowered studies, differences in statistical modeling or variation in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) acquisition and processing.

A standardized accelerometry method for characterizing tremor: Application and validation in an ageing population with postural and action tremor.

Background: Ordinal scales based on qualitative observation are the mainstay in the clinical assessment of tremor, but are limited by inter-rater reliability, measurement precision, range, and ceiling effects. Quantitative tremor evaluation is well-developed in research, but clinical application has lagged, in part due to cumbersome mathematical application and lack of established standards.

Objectives: To develop a novel method for evaluating tremor that integrates a standardized clinical exam, wrist-watch accelerometers, and a software framework for data analysis that does not require advanced mathematical or computing skills.