Yes. The three most common types of lid spasms are lid twitch (or tic), essential blepharospasm, and hemifacial spasm.

What Causes Minor Lid Spasms?

The cause of minor lid twitching is unknown. A slight spasm of the lower lid or even both lids is common and usually of no concern. Minor lid twitches require no treatment as they usually resolve spontaneously. Reducing stress, and correction of any refractive error may help.

What Is Essential Blepharospasm?

Benign essential blepharospasm is a condition usually involving both eyes, where the lids close involuntarily. In advanced cases, muscles of the mouth or neck are sometimes involved in these spasms. When these spasms occur, temporary inability to see may result because of the involuntary closure of the eyelids. These spasms are rare but very troublesome, and often incapacitating.

What Causes Blepharospasm?

Benign essential blepharospasm is caused by abnormal impulses from the brain telling the muscles to go into spasm. It is almost never a psychiatric disease.

How Is Blepharospasm Treated?

Two types of operative surgery for benign essential blepharospasm are available. One involves destruction of the nerve to the muscles. This provides relief, but at times the relief is incomplete and the condition recurs. A different surgical procedure involves removal of the muscles which go into spasm. This may provide considerable relief but is a major surgical procedure and the results are somewhat variable.

Side effects of surgical procedures include widening or drooping of the upper eyelid (ptosis), temporary inability to fully close the eyelid (which may result in some drying or irritation of the eye), and rarely, blurred vision or loss of vision.

Patients with blepharospasm are occasionally treated with medicines or biofeedback, but results are usually disappointing.

A new treatment which is investigational involves injection of botulinum toxin into the involved muscles. This relaxes the muscles for a few months. There have been no systemic effects using botulinum toxin, but since the injection is only temporarily effective, it must be repeated to control the disease and is not a cure. Botulinum toxin has been effective for most patients.

Side effects include ptosis, inability to close the lids with drying or irritation, and rarely blurred or double vision.

What Is Hemifacial Spasm?

Hemifacial spasm is a condition which involves the eyelid muscles and usually the muscles around the mouth on only one side of the face. Hemifacial spasm is usually caused by an artery pressing on the nerve to the facial muscles. A neurosurgical procedure for hemifacial spasm relieves the pressure of the artery on the nerve which causes the face to twitch. While it is a highly successful procedure, serious complications are possible in a small number of cases. Botulinum toxin injections are also beneficial in relieving the lid spasms in patients with hemifacial spasm.

Reference: American Academy of Ophthalmology