Cluster analysis of clinical, biochemical and electrophysiological features of essential tremor patients. Exploratory study

Abstract

Background: Essential tremor (ET) is one of the most common movement disorders. The clinical heterogeneity of ET has been studied for many years, however, there are practically no comprehensive studies dedicated to the assessment of biochemical and electrophysiological parameters associated with the severity of motor and non-motor disorders present in patients with ET and taking into account their heterogeneity.

Objectives: The objective of this report is to differentiate subgroups of essential tremor using cluster analysis of clinical, biochemical and electrophysiological parameters.

Methods: The study enrolled 90 patients with ET. Clustering was perform on the demographic data, scores of scales FTMS, ADL, MoCA, Beka, surface electromyographic data, levels of serum IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNFα, uric acid, ceruloplasmin, MDA.

Results: Based on the analysis of the severity of motor manifestations, the psychoemotional state, the adaptive potential of patients and the biochemical aspects of the pathogenesis, three relatively homogeneous clusters of ET were identified.

Conclusions: Revealing the heterogeneity of essential tremor allows to expand understanding the pathogenesis of disease.

Keywords: Clinical heterogeneity; Cognitive impairment; Cytokines; Essential tremor; Surface electromyographic.