Treatment
Simple occasional eye twitching does not require any treatment as it will disappear on its own. However he more chronic essential blepharospasm will require treatment.
Drugs: Many oral tablets have been used to treat blepharospasm. Some of them from various groups of medication include:
- Anticholinergics
- Cholinergics
- Dopaminergics
- Aantidopaminergics
- GABAminergics
- and Anticonvulsants.
In general, these medications have not been very efficacious and have frequent side effects. In general, botulinum toxins injections have replaced oral medications as the treatment of choice in essential blepharospasm.
Botox injections: Botulinum toxins injections are the treatment of choice in the management of blepharospasm.
Surgical treatment: The principle is to stop contraction of an eye muscle called - Orbicularis. It is done by cutting or transecting the muscle (myomectomy) and sometimes cutting the nerve supplying it. This procedure has a high rate of recurrence and has chances of permanent damage to the nerve and muscle. It is usually done when the patient do not respond to Botulinum toxin (Botox) injections.
