Facial spasms, or fasciculations, are involuntary muscle contractions in the face that can be caused by stress, heredity, or more serious conditions like Tourette’s syndrome or dystonia. While most spasms are not painful, chronic cases can be debilitating. Treatment options include injection therapies, oral medications, and surgery.
Facial spasms, also known as fasciculations, are involuntary muscle contractions in the face that cause tics and twitches. Spasms can occur anywhere on the face and are caused by a wide range of factors, from everyday stress to more serious ailments such as Tourette’s syndrome. Muscle twitches are usually not painful, but if the condition is chronic, it can be quite irritating and even debilitating. The causes of most facial spasms are not well understood, although they are known to be the result of interactions between muscles and nerves. Experts speculate that stress, overstimulation, and heredity may be the underlying causes.
Facial twitches are actually quite common. Most people experience at least eyelid twitching at some point in their lives. Often, these have no identifiable or serious cause and may simply be related to overexcitement or stress. Benign spasms may flare up for a period of time, even up to a day or more, but then persist. More severe facial spasms that result from an illness or disorder are often more chronic and exaggerated and may be associated with other symptoms.
Many people experience myoclonic facial jerks, which are simply involuntary muscle contractions. It is not uncommon for people to experience myoclonus spasms as they fall asleep, although they can occur at any time and for no particular reason. In some cases, myoclonus resembles a spasm disorder, with chronic twitching and twitching that affects a person’s ability to live normally.
Facial twitching caused by dystonia can be more serious and may require treatment. Dystonia is classified as a serious neurological disorder; the contractions can be so severe that a person’s face or other affected body region can be forced into abnormal expressions and poses. For some, dystonia occurs temporarily as a reaction to medications, but for others, it can be more chronic. Dystonia isn’t always severe, however, and can present in mild twitches.
In some middle-aged people, what may seem like a routine eye twitch turns into something more serious. Not only does the twitching continue, but it begins to spread, affecting the lower regions of the face and even starting to distort the mouth. This occurs with hemifacial spasms (HFS), a disorder with no known cause. It is thought that blood vessels that come into contact with facial nerves can trigger these spasms. Bright lights, stress, and strained eyes are known to worsen the effects of HFS as well. Fortunately, these spasms are not typically associated with severe pain and can be treated with a high success rate.
Blepharospasm is a disorder characterized by chronic twitching of the eyelids resembling blinking. In some cases, the spasms are so severe that they can impair vision and eye function. Blepharospasm can get progressively worse, even spreading spasms beyond the eyes and onto the face. There is no known cure, although there are ways to reduce symptoms, such as injection therapies, oral medications, and surgery.
Facial twitching is also a routine symptom of Tourette syndrome. Tourette’s syndrome is characterized by twitching and tics of all kinds, including verbal tics. In milder cases of Tourette’s, a person may exhibit only facial twitching; in severe cases, facial tics can be accompanied by verbal tics and spasms in other parts of the body.
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