The effect of regional white matter hyperintensities on essential tremor subtypes and severity

Objectives To investigate the effect of regional white matter hyperintensities (WMHs) on Essential tremor (ET) subtypes and to explore the association between WMHs load and the severity of motor and non-motor symptoms in ET patients. Methods A cohort of 176 ET patients (including 86 pure ET and 90 ET plus patients) and 91 normal controls (NC) was consecutively recruite. Demographic, clinical and imaging characteristics were compared between individuals with pure ET, ET plus, and NC. The cross-sectional association among regional WMHs and the severity of tremor and non-motor symptoms was assessed within each group. Results Compared with pure ET subgroup, ET plus subgroup demonstrated higher TETRAS scores, NMSS scores, and lower MMSE scores (all P