Intracranial Tumors in Parkinson’s Disease and Essential Tremor

Introduction: Several studies suggest that brain tumors occur more frequently in Parkinson’s disease (PD) than in the general population. Meanwhile data regarding the association of brain tumors and essential tremor (ET), the most common movement disorder, are scarce. Aim: Analysis of prevalence of intracranial tumors (ICT) in a clinical setting of ET versus PD patients. Material and Methods: We analyzed the medical records of 532 ET patients (179 males), aged 69 ± 8.9 years (32-91), with disease duration of 5.9 ± 6.6 years (1-50) and 323 PD patients (173 males), aged 68.4 ± 9.1 years (40-86), with disease duration of 5.1 ± 4.2 years (1-23), hospitalized for a 7-year period at the First clinic of Neurology, “Sveta Marina” University Hospital, Varna, Bulgaria. Results: We found 4 ICT (1.2%) (meningioma, osteoma, cavernoma and metastases) in the PD group, all of them discovered after the diagnosis of PD. In the ET group there were 16 ICT (3.0%), 12 of them discovered after the diagnosis of ET (7 meningiomas, 5 lipomas and 1 osteoma). Two pituitary adenomas, 1 meningioma and 1 glioma were diagnosed before ET symptoms. Conclusion: The prevalence of ICT in ET, compared with PD, is statistically insignificant. Our results might be due to the specific patient cohorts. Other reason may be the prevalence of females in the ET group, because it is known that meningiomas occur more frequently in women. Further investigation is needed to define more accurately the association between ICT, PD and ET in larger population settings.