Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Comparative Study
. 2011;36(2):71-6.
doi: 10.1159/000323389. Epub 2011 Jan 19.

Prevalence of essential tremor in Araihazar, Bangladesh: a population-based study

Elan D Louis  1 , Danella Hafeman, Faruque Parvez, Roy N Alcalay, Tariqul Islam, Abu Baker Siddique, Tajul Islam Patwary, Stephanie Melkonian, Maria Argos, Diane Levy, Habibul Ahsan
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Prevalence of essential tremor in Araihazar, Bangladesh: a population-based study

Elan D Louis et al. Neuroepidemiology. 2011.

Abstract

Background: Essential tremor (ET) is one of the most common neurological diseases. Few prevalence studies have been conducted in South Asia, and none in Bangladesh, one of the most populated countries in the world. We estimated the prevalence of ET in a population-based study in Araihazar, Bangladesh.

Methods: As part of an in-person evaluation in a health outcomes study, each study participant produced 2 handwriting samples, from which ET diagnoses were assigned by 2 independent movement disorder neurologists.

Results: The crude prevalence of ET (age ≥18 years) was 19/1,229 [1.5%, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.0-2.4], and was similar in men and women. The crude prevalence was 2.5% in participants aged ≥40 years and was one half that (1.3%) among younger participants (<40 years), although the difference did not reach statistical significance (p = 0.18). The age-adjusted prevalence (United States 2000 census) was 2.0% (95% CI = 1.2-2.8).

Conclusion: The crude prevalence of ET in Araihazar, Bangladesh, was 1.5%. There is 1 other population-based study in a developing country (Turkey) which, like ours, did not restrict enrollment to middle-aged or elderly individuals and did not rely on screening questionnaires; the crude prevalence in the 2 studies is very similar.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Archimedean spiral of a participant diagnosed with ET. Oscillations are apparent as the participant attempts to execute the spiral drawing.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Archimedean spiral of a second participant diagnosed with ET. Oscillations are apparent in this ET case as well.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

References

    1. Louis ED, Thawani SP, Andrews HF. Prevalence of essential tremor in a multiethnic, community-based study in northern Manhattan, New York, N.Y. Neuroepidemiology. 2009;32:208–214. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Benito-Leon J, Bermejo-Pareja F, Morales JM, Vega S, Molina JA. Prevalence of essential tremor in three elderly populations of central Spain. Mov Disord. 2003;18:389–394. - PubMed
    1. Dogu O, Sevim S, Camdeviren H, Sasmaz T, Bugdayci R, Aral M, Kaleagasi H, Un S, Louis ED. Prevalence of essential tremor: door-to-door neurologic exams in Mersin province, Turkey. Neurology. 2003;61:1804–1806. - PubMed
    1. Louis ED, Ferreira JJ. How common is the most common adult movement disorder? Update on the worldwide prevalence of essential tremor. Mov Disord. 2010;25:434–541. - PubMed
    1. Tan LC, Venketasubramanian N, Ramasamy V, Gao W, Saw SM. Prevalence of essential tremor in Singapore: a study on three races in an Asian country. Parkinsonism Relat Disord. 2005;11:233–239. - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms