Effective treatment of orthostatic tremor with gabapentin

Virgilio Gerald H. Evidente, Charles H. Adler, John N. Caviness, Katrina A. Gwinn

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

49 Scopus citations

Abstract

We report seven patients with orthostatic tremor (OT) who were successfully treated with the anticonvulsant gabapentin. Five of the patients had been previously tried on clonazepam, the most commonly used drug for OT, four without any benefit. The degree of improvement perceived by the patients with gabapentin varied from 60-80% (mean 73%). The effective dose of gabapentin ranged from 300-1800 mg/day (mean 1030 mg/day). The side effects were generally mild, transient, and dose-related. Duration of response has so far ranged from 2-22 months (mean 11 months) with all patients still currently benefiting from gabapentin. We conclude that gabapentin may be an effective treatment for OT. Further trials are indicated.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)829-831
Number of pages3
JournalMovement Disorders
Volume13
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - 1998

Keywords

  • Gabapentin
  • Isometric tremor
  • Orthostatic tremor
  • Shaky legs syndrome

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Neurology
  • Clinical Neurology

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