Dry Needling Can Be An Alternative Treatment for Hemifacial Spasm

Author(s):  
Selly Marisdina ◽  
Henry Sugiharto ◽  
A Pradian

Back Ground: Hemifacial spasm is one of movement disorder case that commonly found in daily clinical practice. Epidemiological data are very limited, the average prevalence is 11 per 100,000 population, 14.5 per 100,000 in women and 7.4 per 100,000 in men. In Germany, the estimated prevalence is 8000 to 9000 peoples.1 The incidence of women is more than that of men with a ratio of 2:1. Based on Yaltho and Jankovic study in 2011, out of 215 patients, the ratio of men to women was 1:1.8.2 One study in Indonesia also reported that most of the subjects were female (64.7%).3 Treatment with botulinum toxin injections is preferred to microvascular decompression surgery therapy, but this injection is only effective in a few months and quite expensive. This study is the first study to assess the effectiveness of dry needling on clinical improvement of hemifacial spasm compared to standard therapy of botulinum toxin injection.Methods: The study design was quasi experimental. Total of 24 subjects were divided into two groups. The first group underwent dry needling intervention while the other had botulinum injection. Clinical severity before and after treatment in both groups was assessed using Jankovic and HFS7 scores.Results: In dry needling group there were significant differences between Jankovic and HFS7 score at baseline and at week 1, 2, 3 and 4. While in botox group significant differences were also Jankovic and HFS7 score at baseline and at weeks 2 and 4. There were also a significant difference of Jankovic and HFS7 score when we compared dry needling group to botulinum toxin group.Conclusion: Dry needling can be an alternative treatment for hemifacial spasm, although clinical improvements based on Jankovic and HFS7 scores in dry needling group were not as effective as those with botulinum toxin injections.

2016 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 124-127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hongwu Qi ◽  
Weining Zhang ◽  
Xudong Zhang ◽  
Caixia Zhao

2013 ◽  
Vol 119 (4) ◽  
pp. 1038-1042 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yukiko Nakahara ◽  
Toshio Matsushima ◽  
Tetsuya Hiraishi ◽  
Tetsuro Takao ◽  
Takeshi Funaki ◽  
...  

Object The authors adopted the infrafloccular approach for microvascular decompression (MVD) surgery to treat hemifacial spasm (HFS). The inferior portion of the flocculus is retracted to observe the root exit zone of cranial nerve (CN) VII between CN IX and the flocculus. During the procedure, the rhomboid lip, a sheetlike layer of neural tissue forming the lateral recess of the fourth ventricle, is sometimes encountered. The existence of the rhomboid lip in cases of HFS was reviewed to determine the importance of the structure during MVD surgery. Methods Preoperative imaging and intraoperative observations in 34 consecutive cases of HFS treated in the period from October 2008 through September 2011 were used to assess the frequency of encountering the rhomboid lip. Results The rhomboid lip was observed during MVD surgery in 9 (26.5%) of the 34 cases but had been demonstrated on preoperative MR images in only 3 cases (8.8%). On T2-weighted images, it appeared as a high-intensity nonstructural area on the ventral side of the flocculus and continued into the fourth ventricle via the foramen of Luschka. Conclusions A large rhomboid lip presents an impediment to MVD surgery in a significant minority of patients with HFS. It is seldom observed on preoperative MR images. Proper dissection of the rhomboid lip away from the arachnoid membrane and/or the lower CNs during MVD surgery provides good visualization of the root exit zone of CN VII and reduces injury of CNs IX and X, avoiding postoperative deficits like dysphagia.


2016 ◽  
Vol 124 (1) ◽  
pp. 90-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Gregory Bigder ◽  
Anthony M. Kaufmann

OBJECT Microvascular decompression (MVD) surgery for hemifacial spasm (HFS) is potentially curative. The findings at repeat MVD in patients with persistent or recurrent HFS were analyzed with the aim to identify factors that may improve surgical outcomes. METHODS Intraoperative findings were determined from review of dictated operative reports and operative diagrams for patients who underwent repeat MVD after prior surgery elsewhere. Clinical follow-up was obtained from the hospital and clinic records, as well as telephone questionnaires. RESULTS Among 845 patients who underwent MVD performed by the senior author, 12 had been referred after prior MVD for HFS performed elsewhere. Following repeat MVD, all patients improved and complete spasm resolution was described by 11 of 12 patients after a mean follow-up of 91 ± 55 months (range 28–193). Complications were limited to 1 patient with aggravation of preexisting hearing loss and mild facial weakness and 1 patient with aseptic meningitis without sequelae. Significant factors that may have contributed to the failure of the first surgery included retromastoid craniectomies that did not extend laterally to the sigmoid sinus or inferiorly to the posterior fossa floor in 11 of 12 patients and a prior surgical approach that focused on the cisternal portion of the facial nerve in 9 of 12 patients. In all cases, significant persistent neurovascular compression (NVC) was evident and alleviated more proximally on the facial root exit zone (fREZ). CONCLUSIONS Most HFS patients will achieve spasm relief with thorough alleviation of NVC of the fREZ, which extends from the pontomedullary sulcus root exit point to the Obersteiner-Redlich transition zone.


2015 ◽  
Vol 22 (8) ◽  
pp. 1319-1325 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mine Hayriye Sorgun ◽  
Rezzak Yilmaz ◽  
Yusuf Alper Akin ◽  
Fatma Nazli Mercan ◽  
Muhittin Cenk Akbostanci

Author(s):  
Stephen P. Kraft ◽  
Anthony E. Lang

ABSTRACT:Seventy-six patients with blepharospasm (mean age 56.9 years) received 248 injection treatments with botulinum A exotoxin (mean 3.1 treatments per patient): 87.0% of treatments led to total relief of spasms for a mean interval of 14.1 weeks. The average duration of response remained fairly constant over the first six injection series, although patients with the most severe spasms had shorter intervals than patients with less severe symptoms. Twenty patients with hemifacial spasm (mean age 56.9 years) received 44 treatments (mean 1.9 treatments per patient): In 93.1% of cases there was total relief of periocular and perioral spasms, with a mean interval of 17.4 weeks. The average duration of response for the third series of treatments was much shorter than the mean durations for the first two treatments. Side effects were always transient and included ptosis (23.3%), dry eyes (18.1%), tearing (5.5%), and strabismus (1.4%). No patient had a systemic reaction to the drug. Chronic benign eyelid fasciculations were also successfully treated in 3 patients with single treatments.


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