Eye twitching is quite common and harmless. While most eyelid twitching lasts only a few minutes, sometimes an eyelid twitch can persist for days or longer. This is also called myokymia. While most of the eyelid twitch is innocuous sometimes it can become serious and it leads to hemifacial spasm or benign essential blepharospasm. Persistent eyelid twitch needs to be evaluated immediately by an eye doctor.
There are various reasons for eye twitching. This includes stress, fatigue, eye strain, caffeine, alcohol, dry eyes, nutrition problems, and allergies.
The lid twitch is usually felt by the person who has it and is not visible to others easily. Most eye allergies resolve on their own with changes in diet habits, adequate water intake, or changes in lifestyle.
Most of the time one can get rid of this by a reduction in caffeine intake and alcohol intake, reducing stress by performing yoga and breathing exercises. If there is a lack of sleep one needs to catch up on sleep. Digital eye strain needs to be reduced by following the 20-20-20 rule: Every 20 minutes, look away from your screen and allow your eyes to focus on a distant object (at least 20 feet away) for 20 seconds or longer. This reduces fatigue that may trigger eye twitching. Dry eyes can be an important cause of lid twitching and need to be addressed by using appropriate lubricants. A lack of certain elements in the diet, such as magnesium, can trigger eyelid spasms. Histamine release due to allergies can also trigger eyelid twitch. If nothing works, botulinum toxin injections can relax the involuntary muscle contractions that can lead to twitching. One must consult an oculoplasty surgeon if there is persistent eye twitching or sudden changes in appearance or movement of half your face (including your eyelids), or if both eyelids close tightly making it impossible to open the eyes.
Dr. Ramesh Murthy is one of the best eye specialists and oculoplastic surgeons in Pune and India and he is available at Axis Eye Clinic which is one of the best eye clinics in Pune.
