Active clinical trials for "Blepharospasm"

The aim of this study is to develop new rating scales to help diagnose and measure the severity of blepharospasm. This is a condition involving a lot of blinking and spasms of eye closure that people can't control. This study will also test some video software to see if it can help diagnose people or tell the severity of disease using only a video recording of an exam. There is an additional plan to create an educational video to teach others the proper use of the scale and video software.

The purpose of this survey is to collect detailed information on patients treated for blepharospasm with incobotulinumtoxinA, abobotulinumtoxinA and onabotulinumtoxinA, including how often they are treated with botulinum toxin, how long their treatment lasts, how satisfied they are with their treatment, and if there is any improvement in their symptoms with the treatment.

This study will examine the role of certain areas of the brain in blepharospasm, a type of dystonia (abnormality of movement and muscle tone) that causes unwanted or uncontrollable blinking or closing of the eyelids. The study will compare brain activity in healthy volunteers and in people with blepharospasm to find differences in the brain that may lead to better treatments for dystonia. Healthy volunteers and people with blepharospasm who are 18 years of age and older may be eligible for this study. All candidates are screened with a medical history. People with blepharospasm also have a physical examination and blepharospasm rating. Participants undergo transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and electromyography (EMG) in two 4-hour sessions, separated by 1 to 7 days. TMS A wire coil is held on the subject's scalp. A brief electrical current is passed through the coil, creating a magnetic pulse that stimulates the brain. The subject hears a click and may feel a pulling sensation on the skin under the coil. There may be a twitch in muscles of the face, arm or leg. During the stimulation, subjects may be asked to tense certain muscles slightly or perform other simple actions. Repetitive TMS involves repeated magnetic pulses delivered in short bursts of impulses. Subjects receive 60 pulses per minute over 15 minutes. EMG Surface EMG is done during TMS to measure the electrical activity of muscles. For this test, electrodes (small metal disks) are filled with a conductive gel and taped to the skin of the face....

Blepharospasm (BEB) is a focal dystonia characterized by forceful, involuntary contractions of the orbicularis oculi muscle. (Jankovic et al 1983) Patients with BEB report task and situation specific modulations of their symptoms. So called "sensory tricks" are actions that minimize symptoms and include concentrating, talking, pulling on the eyelids, blowing air, and applying pressure to the periocular or temple region. (Weiner 1984) Many patients describe that other tasks/situations are exacerbate their symptoms specifically under bright fluorescent lights and stress. (Burke 1984) Earlier studies showed that blink patterns differ between BEB patients and control during rest, reading and talking. In healthy subjects gaze evoked blinks are a physiologic phenomenon: initiation of gaze shifts evoke a blink, blinks facilitate gaze shifts. (Evinger 1994) In healthy subjects emotions and thoughts influence gaze shifts and blink rate. (Leal 2008, de Genaro 1988) However, little is known about various task and emotion specific influences on symptoms of BEB (e.g. expecting a gaze shift might worsen symptoms while driving a car). Differences in emotion and gaze related blink patterns between patients and controls will contribute to the understanding of the pathophysiology of BEB. This might offer new therapeutic options, e.g. symptom modulation. The investigators hypothesize that blink patterns, measured by duration and frequency of pupillary occlusion differ between patients and control, when performing gaze shifts and emotion related blink patterns, measured by duration and frequency of pupillary occlusion differ between patients and controls. The aim of this pilot trial is to assess differences in gaze evoked and emotion related blink patterns between patients and controls. These differences might contribute to the understanding of the pathophysiology of BEB.