Expert: Ronald Levy, M.D. - 5/22/2009

Question
Dr Levy, thank-you kindly for taking the time to answer my questions. My question is based on the information i will provide you with first. When i was thirteen i broke my wrist, due to it healing unproperly i pinched a nerve in it which now causes me to shake. Mostly my shake stays, what sems to me, minimum - to others i get a response along the lines of 'oh my God why are you shaking SO much?." The hand that shakes is my dominant right-hand. It shakes mostly consistantly, which i've believed i've stated, but also a little more during high times of stress. I really want to do this career, but don't know how much this will affect my ability to perform. I believe i can control it quite well after dealing with it for 10 years now..is this going to affect me drastically, and make it near impossible to study this field?


Thank-you so incredibly much for your time!
Brittney.

Answer
Your right hand is your intubating hand so if you can control it, then there should be no problem from that aspect. I assume you are able to write, etc which means that you can control it enough to be legible. I don't suspect you will have a problem from that standpoint.

Ronald Levy, MD
Professor of Anesthesiology
UTMB-Galveston