ABSTRACT
I. Introduction 221
II. Definition and Clinical Characteristics of Dystonic Tremor 222
III. Diagnosis and Pathophysiology 222
IV. Management 224
V. Conclusion 224
References 224
I. INTRODUCTION
Dystonia is a neurological syndrome characterized by involuntary, sustained,
patterned and often repetitive muscle contractions of opposing muscles, causing
twisting movements, abnormal postures, or both (1). While in some patients
with dystonia the abnormal posture may be sustained, in others the dystonic
movement is repetitive, thus resembling tremor. The term dystonic tremor was
introduced during the 1980s, when movement disorder specialists recognized
that tremor was a common finding in patients with dystonia (2). Although this
movement disorder has had numerous proposed definitions (2-5) and its patho-
physiological basis is still not fully understood, an effort has been made to
separate this condition from other tremor syndromes and classify it as a distinct
type of tremor (6).
