Premium
Suppression of essential tremor by propranolol: Correlation of effect with drug plasma levels and intensity of beta‐adrenergic blockade
Author(s) -
McAllister R. G.,
Markesbery William R.,
Ware Ray W.,
Howell Shirley M.
Publication year - 1977
Publication title -
annals of neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.764
H-Index - 296
eISSN - 1531-8249
pISSN - 0364-5134
DOI - 10.1002/ana.410010210
Subject(s) - propranolol , blockade , essential tremor , medicine , drug , anesthesia , beta (programming language) , endocrinology , pharmacology , physical medicine and rehabilitation , receptor , computer science , programming language
Propranolol was given intravenously to 6 adult patients with essential tremor, using a bolus‐infusion regimen for rapid production and maintenance of predicted drug plasma levels. Tremor in the outstretched hand was quantitated by integration of the waveform signal recorded from a miniature accelerometer. Propranolol had no effect on tremor frequency (6 to 8 cps), but it suppressed tremor amplitude in all patients in direct proportion to the drug's plasma concentration and to the intensity of beta‐adrenergic blockade produced. Among this group of patients the maximal tremor decrease occurred at plasma levels of about 100 ng per milliliter and varied widely between individuals (18 to 85%), implying that the efficacy of propranolol therapy in essential tremor depends on both the plasma drug level and the innate sensitivity of the disorder in the individual patient.