Table 1 Clinical characteristics of participants

n

126

20

19

Age (years)

72.6 ± 12.4

73.5 ± 15.0

81.5 ± 6.9

0.04^a

Female gender

64 (50.8)

15 (75.0)

12 (63.2)

0.50^b

White ethnicity

117 (92.9)

19 (95.0)

16 (84.2)

0.34^b

Current smoker

6 (4.8)

0 (0.0)

1 (5.3)

0.49^b

Education (years)

15.8 ± 2.8

15.6 ± 2.9

14.9 ± 2.5

0.44^a

Married

69 (54.8)

7 (35.0)

6 (31.6)

0.86^b

Lives alone

42 (33.3)

12 (60.0)

9 (47.4)

0.43^b

Currently in work force

26 (20.6)

3 (15.0)

1 (5.3)

0.61^b

Years since last hospitalization

10.7 ± 14.5 [4.0]

7.6 ± 12.1 [3.0]

12.8 ± 21.8 [4.0]

0.36^c

Answered “yes” to the question “Does anyone in your family have tremor?”

83 (65.9)

14 (70.0)

10 (52.6)

0.27^b

Age first noticed tremor (years)

39.5 ± 20.1

41.3 ± 21.5

41.4 ± 16.9

0.98^a

Duration of tremor (years)

33.2 ± 19.1

32.3 ± 21.9

40.0 ± 17.7

0.25^a

Answered “yes” to the question “Does your tremor embarrass you?”

67 (53.2)

11 (55.0)

12 (63.2)

0.61^b

Answered “yes” to “Does your voice almost always tremble when you talk?”

26 (20.6)

9 (50.0)

4 (25.0)

0.13^b

Reply to “Do you ever have an internal sensation that you are having a head tremor?”

0.016^b

No

84 (66.7)

5 (25.0)

12 (63.2)

Yes

42 (33.3)

15 (75.0)

7 (36.8)

Reply to “When you feel your head shaking, do you ever see it in the mirror”?

0.002^b

No

87 (69.0)

3 (15.0)

12 (63.2)

Yes

39 (31.0)

17 (85.0)

7 (36.8)

Reply to “How often do you feel nervous or anxious?”

0.36^b

Never/No

48 (38.1)

6 (30.0)

8 (42.1)

Rarely

17 (13.5)

4 (20.0)

2 (10.5)

Sometimes

34 (27.0)

6 (30.0)

7 (36.8)

Frequently

16 (12.7)

1 (5.0)

2 (10.5)

Always/Yes

11 (8.7)

3 (15.0)

0 (0.0)

CESD score

9.0 ± 5.7

8.8 ± 5.0

9.0 ± 5.8

0.91^a

Severity rating of head tremor (examination)^f

0.81^b

1 (mild)

17 (13.5)

8 (40.0)

9 (47.4)

2 (moderate)

19 (15.1)

10 (50.0)

9 (47.4)

3 (severe)

3 (2.4)

2 (10.0)

1 (5.3)

Total tremor score (examination)

21.1 ± 6.2

23.9 ± 6.5

21.05 ± 6.7

0.19^a

Folstein Mini Mental Status Examination Score

28.4 ± 1.9 [29.0]

29.0 ± 1.6 [30.0]

27.6 ± 1.9 [28.0]

0.01^c