Ask the doctor

with Dr. Lowell Williams, Columbus Ohio

Questions: I am aware that stress increases the progression of CMT. Have there been any studies done to test how fast stress aggravates the disease or, how much stress is too much for people with CMT?

Answer: Stress is SO DIFFICULT to measure accurately that it is impossible to answer your question. Making this harder is the fact that CMT is a slowly progressive disease with times of no change or even improvement. Dr. Janice Kiecolt-Glaser at Ohio State University has shown that immune responses become less effective after the loss of a loved one and in caretakers for Alzheimer's disease patients. So it is likely that severe stress in CMT would also alter immunity, but we do not have a handle on how that affects CMT. – April 1990

Question: After a minor operation last year, when I was supposed to walk out of the operating room, I developed a tremor in my arms that lasted for about 20 minutes. I shook uncontrollably and it frightened me. It hasn't happened since then except I can feel it coming back when I am very tired and very stressed. Why did this happen to me and how can I avoid it in the future?

Answer: As discussed before in this column, the poor "autonomic nervous system" control that people with CMT often have may contribute to your "shakiness" under stress. Unfortunately, people with CMT can have other related autonomic problems such as excess sweating and either constipation or frequent loose bowels. -- Aug. 1990