Do Your Eyes Twitch?

If your eyes twitch in the absence of a pretty woman, you probably have a tic or habit spasm.

No, I'm not referring to the bloodsucking insects you'll find in dogs. In medical par¬lance, a tic is the repeated contraction of a group of muscles, especially of the face. This habit is common in nervous children between the ages of five and 12 but it can occur at any age.

"Common tics are blinking of the eyelids, grimac¬ing, shaking or nodding the head, pouting, clearing the throat, swallowing, coughing, and shrugging the shoulders. Hiccups may occur as a spasm of the dia¬phragm," said the late Dr. Morris Fishbein, the former editor of the Journal of the American Medical Association, in his “Popu¬lar Illustrated Medical Encyclopedia.”

Tics that affect the eyes have a different name. The twitching of the ring muscle of the eye which causes constant winking is called blepharospasm. It may occur as a result of fatigue, overexertion of a muscle or anxiety.

In some cases, tics may be caused by serious diseases like St. Vitus Hance or chorea or it may follow an attack of encephalitis (the inflammation of the brain). In these conditions, however, the spasms are varied and unpredictable.

If your doctor has given you a clean bill of health, there's no need to worry. Children generally outgrow their tics while adults should learn to relax to control the problem. In severe cases, psychiatric treatment may be necessary.

'The physician, parent or friend should attempt to discover the underlying cause of nervousness and try to remove or alleviate it - usually a very tall order. In any event, an effort should be made to improve the subject's general health. The subject should never be criticized for his tic, as it will only tend to exacerbate his nervousness and worsen his condition," said Dr. Linda Donelle Lewis, assistant professor of neurology at Columbia University in Funk & Wagnalls “Family Health Book.”

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