I just had a complete Pulmonary Function Test (PFT). The final part of the test started with four doses of Albuterol! Yes, 4 doses! Exhale, nurse dispenses, inhale, hold for 10 seconds. Repeat 3 more times.
Then you have to wait for 10 minutes before the final test. It’s all to see if bronco-dilators affect your lung capacity.
This is not my first experience with Albuterol. I’ve got a persistent dry cough which I’ve had for years. Nothing cures it. Some treatments make it go away for a while. Spring and sunshine helps sometimes. Been prescribed Albuterol twice now. Usually doesn’t do anything for the caught and usually doesn’t affect my mild Essential Tremors.
But this time it was different. I felt a bit light headed as I left the medical centre. I was OK to drive but by the time I got home I had bad tremors. Worse than any I have experienced. I had to use two hands to hold a small bowl of fruit while I ate.
I had visible tremors in my right hand, my non-dominant hand. Usually, my tremors are only visible in my left hand. My fingers in the right hand have started to develop some slight tremors over the past couple of years, but this was different.
My left arm tremors are Pronation/Supination tremors. Known frequency of 5.2Hz with an amplitude of 2-3 centimetres. Something like 2-3 on the TETRAS scale. Mild to moderate.
Today, the tremors in my right hand were just about as bad as what I normally experience in my left hand.
After two and a half hours, my tremors appear to be returning to my “normal” state.
A quick search of Pubmed, the National Library of Medicine shows a 1986 study shows Albuterol exacerbates Essential Tremors by as much as 50%.
Caveat Emptor! Another drug to be avoided or used sparingly with pre-knowledge that it may make one tremors worse.
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