Hi all,
My mom's tremor has gotten progressively worse. We read up on a new "ish" procedure that is less invasive than deep brain stimulation tho it only helps one side. It has shown good results and is starting to be covered under insurance. Focused ultrasound. She wants to look into it so we are going to set up a consult. Was curious if anyone here had experience with it either themselves or for a loved one. Thank you.
I tagged this under Parkinson's as it was the closest topic. She had not had a Parkinson's diagnoses.
I am not familiar with the treatment that you are describing. If you try it. I hope it will be successful in reducing the tremors.
The NP at assisted living where my FIL is assumed he has Parkinson’s , but he does not . He’s had essential tremors pretty bad since his 60’s. My husband has it slightly at times . So does his aunt .
OP here. Thanks for the responses. She was prescribed inderal but did not tolerate it well, her doc has prescribed something else that she will try. I don't know exactly what but she can take it at night. She said it's similar to Xanax.
She will probably at least have a consult for the FUS, her pcp put in the referral for her, and I'll update if she decides to move forward. Maybe the new medication will help.
Care and rest to all...
It just began to quit helping about a year ago. Both he and his wife were thrilled with the outcome. Now he's on meds and extremely well loved by his wonderful wife. He can't do the procedure again, but they are grateful for the 15 years of better life!
However, a side effect is a loss of balance, sometimes, temporary sometimes longer lasting. My mom's balance is really bad and she can't risk doing something that will make it worse.
In any case, the PA and surgeon were so informative, transparent and professional. They both said my mom's tremor wasn't really bad enough to warrant the treatment. That plus the balance implications led her to decide against it and try the inderal again instead.
It amazes me that there can be such a dramatic improvement with what used to be done by cutting into someone's skull, and is now done with ultrasound!!
Hope this helps someone down the road!
My mother had awful tremors due to her Parkinson’s disease.
I can understand your mother’s discomfort and concern regarding her tremors.
As my mother’s Parkinson’s disease progressed she lost the ability to do many things.
When she was in the earlier stages, she had tremors but when she attempted to thread a needle she was able to do so.
I found it fascinating how the brain could distinguish between certain things such as holding a coffee cup and threading a needle.
She would tremble when she drank her morning cup of coffee but was steady enough to thread a needle.
My mom was an excellent seamstress. She also crocheted, knitted and did embroidery. It broke my heart when she couldn’t do those things anymore.