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Surgery for Hemifacial Spasm

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Monitoring the Nervous System for Anesthesiologists and Other Health Care Professionals

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Abstract

Hemifacial spasm (HFS), a syndrome of unilateral facial nerve hyperactive dysfunction, is a severe and disabling condition that causes impairments in the quality of life [1]. The spasms are characterized by slight intermittent twitching of a single facial muscle that gradually becomes more intense and occurs with greater frequency, later spreading to involve the other muscles of facial expression. Ultimately, the patient may develop prolonged contractions of all the involved muscles causing severe, disfiguring grimacing with partial closure of the eye and drawing up of the corner of the mouth, the so-called tonus phenomenon [2]. Typical and atypical variations of the disorder exist. In typical HFS, spasms begin insidiously in the orbicularis oculi muscle and spread over time to the muscles of the face with variable involvement of the frontalis and platysma muscles. Conversely, in atypical HFS, spasms begin insidiously in the muscles of the lower face and spread to the orbicularis oculi muscles over time. Typical HFS occurs much more frequently than atypical HFS [3]. The best available data suggest that the prevalence rate of HFS is 10 patients per 100,000 in the population of the United States and Norway [4, 5].

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Neurosurgery, UPMC Hamot Medical Center Erie, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Raymond F. Sekula (Clinical Associate Professor of Neurosurgery)

  2. Department of Neurosurgery–Center for Cranial Nerve Disorder, Allegheny General Hospital, Pittsburgh, PA, 15212, USA

    Peter J. Jannetta

  3. Department of Neurosurgery, Center for Cranial Nerve Disorders, Drexel University College of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Gregory D. Arnone

  4. Department of Anesthesiology, Chief, Division of Neuroanesthesia, Allegheny General Hospital, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Penny P. Liu

  5. Vigilance Physician Services, PC, San Francisco, USA

    Penny P. Liu (President)

Authors
  1. Raymond F. Sekula
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  2. Peter J. Jannetta
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  3. Gregory D. Arnone
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  4. Penny P. Liu
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  5. Penny P. Liu
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Penny P. Liu .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Director, Neurosurg Anes Fellowship Prog, Professor, Department of Anesthesiology Chief, Neurosurgical Anesthesia, Chicago, Illinois, USA

    Antoun Koht

  2. Univ of Colorado School of Medicine, Professor Department of Anesthesiology, Aurora, Colorado, USA

    Tod B. Sloan

  3. Director,, Associate Professor Department of Anesthesiology, Chicago, Illinois, USA

    J. Richard Toleikis

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Sekula, R.F., Jannetta, P.J., Arnone, G.D., Liu, P.P., Liu, P.P. (2012). Surgery for Hemifacial Spasm. In: Koht, A., Sloan, T., Toleikis, J. (eds) Monitoring the Nervous System for Anesthesiologists and Other Health Care Professionals. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-0308-1_23

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-0308-1_23

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  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-0308-1

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