To study the risk factors of social anxiety (SA) in essential tremor (ET) patients.
Motor, cognition, and SA were evaluated using the Fahn-Tolosa-Marin Tremor Rating Scale (FTMTRS), Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), and Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS) for each subject. The potential risk factors of SA in ET were analyzed using univariate analysis.
A total of 80 ET patients and 85 healthy controls completed the evaluation. The LSAS evaluation showed that the prevalence of SA in the ET group was 48.8%, higher than that in controls (12.9%,
SA is prevalent in patients with ET. Risk factors, such as female sex, age, and head tremor, should be considered for the prevention and intervention of SA in ET patients.