Abstract

Treatment options for tremor remain limited despite it being the most common movement disorder encountered by neurologists. A significant limitation to the development of new treatment strategies has been a lack of understanding of the pathophysiology of tremor–genesis. In this study we apply methodology previously used to describe a broad range of oscillating biological systems, the Phase Response Curve (PRC), to characterise Parkinsonian tremor. We demonstrate that it is possible to manipulate the on–going phase of Parkinsonian tremor with low intensity (submotor–threshold) cortical stimulation.

A real–time closed loop cortical stimulation paradigm, which utilises properties of the PD phase response curve, is proposed as a potential therapeutic option.