ReviewTremor and other hyperkinetic movements (New York, N.Y.)2017
The Olivary Hypothesis of Essential Tremor: Time to Lay this Model to Rest?
Review in Tremor and other hyperkinetic movements (New York, N.Y.), 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 37 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
37 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 43 citations in OpenAlex.
- Imaging the Pathophysiology of Essential Tremor-A Systematic Review.Frontiers in neurology · 2021Pooled it
- Pathophysiology of Cerebellar Tremor: The Forward Model-Related Tremor and the Inferior Olive Oscillation-Related Tremor.Frontiers in neurology · 2021Pooled it
- Neurophysiological Basis of Tremor Disorders: Parkinson's Disease, Essential Tremor, Tremor in Dystonia, and Holmes Tremor.Seminars in neurology · 2026Review
- Neuroscience of human ventral lateral thalamic nucleus related to movement and movement disorders.Journal of neurophysiology · 2025Review
- The cerebellar involvement in essential tremor: the connecting roads.Arquivos de neuro-psiquiatria · 2025Review
- Identification of a metabolic brain network characterizing essential tremor.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Six Myths and Misconceptions about Essential Tremor.Tremor and other hyperkinetic movements (New York, N.Y.) · 2024Review
- Differences in Olivo-Cerebellar Circuit and Cerebellar Network Connectivity in Essential Tremor: a Resting State fMRI Study.Cerebellum (London, England) · 2023Article
- T-type calcium channels as therapeutic targets in essential tremor and Parkinson's disease.Annals of clinical and translational neurology · 2023Review
- A structural magnetic resonance imaging review of clinical motor outcomes from deep brain stimulation in movement disorders.Brain communications · 2023Review
- Milestones in Tremor Research: 10 Years Later.Movement disorders clinical practice · 2022Review
- Essential Tremor: Five New Things.Neurology. Clinical practice · 2022Article
- Essential tremor: Is this an electrical or a degenerative disorder? Or is it both?International review of neurobiology · 2022Article
- Is the inferior olive central to essential tremor? Yes.International review of neurobiology · 2022Article
- Is essential tremor a degenerative disorder or an electric disorder? Degenerative disorder.International review of neurobiology · 2022Article
- Reduction of neuronal hyperexcitability with modulation of T-type calcium channel or SK channel in essential tremor.International review of neurobiology · 2022Review
- How important is the inferior olive in essential tremor? An evolving story.International review of neurobiology · 2022Article
- Cerebellar nuclei neurons display aberrant oscillations during harmaline-induced tremor.Heliyon · 2021Article
- Two-Photon Laser Ablation and In Vivo Wide-Field Imaging of Inferior Olive Neurons Revealed the Recovery of Olivocerebellar Circuits in Zebrafish.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Article
- Increased Purkinje Cell Complex Spike and Deep Cerebellar Nucleus Synchrony as a Potential Basis for Syndromic Essential Tremor. A Review and Synthesis of the Literature.Cerebellum (London, England) · 2021Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
2 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundAlthough essential tremor (ET) is the most common tremor disorder, its pathogenesis is not fully understood. The traditional model of ET, proposed in the early 1970s, posited that the inferior olivary nucleus (ION) was the prime generator of tremor in ET and that ET is a disorder of electrophysiological derangement, much like epilepsy. This article comprehensively reviews the origin and basis of this model, its merits and problems, and discusses whether it is time to lay this model to rest.
methodsA PubMed search was performed in March 2017 to identify articles for this review.
resultsThe olivary model gains support from the recognition of neurons with pacemaker property in the ION and the harmaline-induced tremor models (as the ION is the prime target of harmaline). However, the olivary model is problematic, as neurons with pacemaker property are not specific to the ION and the harmaline model does not completely represent the human disease ET. In addition, a large number of neuroimaging studies in ET have not detected structural or functional changes in the ION; rather, abnormalities have been reported in structures related to the cerebello-thalamo-cortical network. Moreover, a post-mortem study of microscopic changes in the ION did not detect any differences between ET cases and controls. DISCUSSION: The olivary model largely remains a physiological construct. Numerous observations have cast considerable doubt as to the validity of this model in ET. Given the limitations of the model, we conclude that it is time now to lay this model to rest.
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Registered trials
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