“Can there be tremors in the hand due to nervous disorder?”
My father is 78 years old and all of a sudden his hands and legs are having tremors. He is also losing out balance and is slanting towards his right. Is it normal old age or does it indicate a nervous disorder?
6 Answers
Richard Grant Hunter
Neurologist
He has a neurologic disease. If it happened suddenly, as you describe, it may have been a stroke. Other processes take longer than "sudden". Needs to see a neurologist. In meantime, would see his family doctor to see if he is a candidate for aspirin anticoagulation. Hope all goes well!
It is not normal to have such tremors at any age.The additional symptoms and signs you describe indicate that your father has a disorder of the central nervous system, likely a brain disorder, and very possibly Parkinson's disease. Your father should have a consultation with a neurologist.
Tremors in elderly patients can be due to many different reasons. If the balance is affected, you just exclude central nervous system involvement. However, a detailed neurological exam will be important to exclude other causes. Tremors may also be related to Parkinson’s disease. Overall the differential diagnosis is very broad.
Can't tell for sure without performing a neurological examination. It can be either one. If it doesn't improve, then I would see a local neurolgist.
Although symptoms seem typical for Parkinson plus syndrome, yet; list of other possible causes of such symptoms could be a long one, neurological evaluation should be the start, brain MRI and lab work, especially Mg & Ca is of help.
These are definite nervous system symptoms of a disorder. It is possible that these were ongoing issues that have become more apparent in recent days. However, the balance disturbance and the slanting towards the right would likely have been noticed if they were present for a while. Therefore, this suggests a new onset problem. The question of the nature of the problem is directed by the issue of where in the nervous system would you see these problems arise. The favoring of one side suggests a structural cause rather than a metabolic cause.
