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Does Haloperidol Cause Hand Tremors And Hallucinations?
Question: Refresh] Print this page Haloperidol is antipsychotic medication which she needs to reduce hallucinations.
If it increase tremor, may it be substituted by another medication. You think, valproic ACD has to be substituted by propranolol? What to do to reduce her drowsiness?
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Dr. XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
Psychiatrist
User Selected Specialty : Psychiatrist
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Patient Profile
Gender: Female
Age: 86
Visited a Doctor: Yes
Medications Tried: Haloperidol and Valproic ACD, see dosage changes in description above
Hi! My mom is 96 years old and she has dementia,
About two weeks ago, she was in the hospital, where she was admitted because she had shaking / tremor hands and legs.
Psychiatrist in the hospital has prescribed Haloperidol 1mg and Valproic ACD 1 tea spoon 2 times per day.
these medications have made her very sleepy and weak.
per her doctor's advice, we have reduced the dose of Haloperidol to 0.5 mg.
she was sleepy despite of reducing the dosage.
after that we have decided to reduce the dosage of Haloperidol to 0.25 mg. my mom had sleep a bit less,but the hands and legs have started to shake again.
please advise how to adjust medication somewhere in between (so hand shaking and sleep due to drowsiness are balanced), or should we change the medication
If it increase tremor, may it be substituted by another medication. You think, valproic ACD has to be substituted by propranolol? What to do to reduce her drowsiness?
Dr. XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
Dr. XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
Psychiatrist
User Selected Specialty : Psychiatrist
Upload New Reports ยป
Patient Profile
Gender: Female
Age: 86
Visited a Doctor: Yes
Medications Tried: Haloperidol and Valproic ACD, see dosage changes in description above
Hi! My mom is 96 years old and she has dementia,
About two weeks ago, she was in the hospital, where she was admitted because she had shaking / tremor hands and legs.
Psychiatrist in the hospital has prescribed Haloperidol 1mg and Valproic ACD 1 tea spoon 2 times per day.
these medications have made her very sleepy and weak.
per her doctor's advice, we have reduced the dose of Haloperidol to 0.5 mg.
she was sleepy despite of reducing the dosage.
after that we have decided to reduce the dosage of Haloperidol to 0.25 mg. my mom had sleep a bit less,but the hands and legs have started to shake again.
please advise how to adjust medication somewhere in between (so hand shaking and sleep due to drowsiness are balanced), or should we change the medication
Brief Answer:
Propranolol can be added to her prescription.
Detailed Answer:
Hello thanks for asking from HCM
I can understand your concern. Most likely cause of her tremors is dose of Haloperidol. Though 1 mg dose is not a high dose but she is 86 and at this age even low dose could cause tremors or other side effects. Even Valproate could also cause tremors.
The doses of Haloperidol have been reduced to 0.25 mg and this should have helped her. If her tremors are persisting then as mentioned we can add low dose Propranolol. This is most effective in controlling Valproate induced tremors. If she could not sleep with low dose haloperidol then we can add second generation antipsychotic drugs like low dose Olanzapine or Risperidone. The drugs are relatively safer and doesn't cause extrapyramidal side effects.
Please discuss with her doctor for these drugs.
Thanks and Take care
You are welcome to ask follow up doubts.
Propranolol can be added to her prescription.
Detailed Answer:
Hello thanks for asking from HCM
I can understand your concern. Most likely cause of her tremors is dose of Haloperidol. Though 1 mg dose is not a high dose but she is 86 and at this age even low dose could cause tremors or other side effects. Even Valproate could also cause tremors.
The doses of Haloperidol have been reduced to 0.25 mg and this should have helped her. If her tremors are persisting then as mentioned we can add low dose Propranolol. This is most effective in controlling Valproate induced tremors. If she could not sleep with low dose haloperidol then we can add second generation antipsychotic drugs like low dose Olanzapine or Risperidone. The drugs are relatively safer and doesn't cause extrapyramidal side effects.
Please discuss with her doctor for these drugs.
Thanks and Take care
You are welcome to ask follow up doubts.
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Yogesh D
Answered by
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