Blood pressure drug shows promise for reducing tremor in Parkinson’s

Tremor, or shaking, is one of the most common symptoms of Parkinson’s. As many as 7 in 10 people with Parkinson’s will experience a tremor as a symptom of their condition. Some people have tremor when resting, but it can often be made worse when a person is experiencing stress. Unfortunately, current treatments for Parkinson’s are often ineffective at reducing this symptom.

Read more about tremor and the current support available.

Propranolol is a drug that was developed to treat high blood pressure, but has since been found to have an effect on a number of different conditions. It is now also commonly used to treat anxiety, and is a standard treatment for essential tremor (a condition that is often mistaken as Parkinson’s). Until now, there had been no research to understand whether propranolol could also be beneficial for people who experience a tremor as a result of their Parkinson’s.

What did the researchers do?

Researchers in the Netherlands studied 27 people with Parkinson’s in a small study run over 2 hospital visits. At the first visit, half of the participants received a dose of propranolol, while the others received a placebo (dummy drug). On the second visit, anyone who had received propranolol during their first visit got the placebo, and those on the placebo were given the active drug.

At every visit, all participants had their tremor measured with a hand device. Tremor was measured at rest, and also while participants were completing thinking and memory tests, to replicate a stressful situation. Most participants also had an MRI scan to measure brain activity.

What do the results show?

The results showed that people who had taken propranolol on the day had a reduced tremor, both at rest and under stress, compared to those who had taken the placebo. MRI scans also showed that propranolol reduced the amount of activity in areas of the brain associated with tremor.

Read the full results on the Annals of Neurology website.

Dr Becky Jones, Research Communications Manager at Parkinson’s UK, said:

"We know that tremor can be one of the most disruptive symptoms of Parkinson’s, and research looking at better ways of controlling tremor are crucial. We’re seeing an increase in studies that are looking at different ways to do this, from wearable technology to mindfulness and wellbeing programmes. Read about some of the research we’re funding in this news story.

"This is a very small study run over a short time period. But it’s promising that the results show that propranolol could provide some short term relief for people who are experiencing a tremor, particularly when under stress.

"It’s worth remembering that propranolol is used to treat high blood pressure. So one of the side effects could be that it causes low blood pressure, which we know can already be a problem for people with Parkinson’s. This could also make symptoms like dizziness or falls more likely.

"We look forward to seeing bigger and longer studies to understand what the potential impact of this could be for the Parkinson’s community."