BEHAVIORAL RELAXATION TRAINING FOR TREMOR DISORDERS IN OLDER ADULTS

Two adult men, aged 86 and 63, with essential tremor and Parkinson's-d isease-related tremor, respectively, were provided Behavioral Relaxati on Training in reclined and upright seated positions. Multiple measure s were recorded, including the Behavioral Relaxation Scale (BRS), clin ical and self-rated tremor severity, informant ratings, ratings of dis ability in activities of daily living (ADL), and forearm EMG. Results showed increased relaxation skills on the BRS, with reductions in EMG, tremor ratings, and some ADL disabilities. Upright BRS scores did not change during reclined training, but improved rapidly during upright training. The second man was found to suffer from dyskinesia when he r elaxed during baseline, which declined markedly during training. A two -week follow-up indicated that most improvements were maintained by bo th men. Statistical analyses of data for each man showed significant c hanges. These results suggest that relaxation may be useful in the tre atment of idiopathic and pathologic tremor disorders in older adults.