Why does the eye twitch and what to do about it?

A problem such as nervous tics occurs quite often in children. When this happens, parents begin to worry. They forbid older children from blinking their eyes too often, which doesn’t work out very well. Nervous tics in an infant, frequent blinking of the eyes, completely cause panic. How justified is it?

Nervous tic in a baby

What is a nervous tic

A tic is an obsessive movement that happens on its own. There are many types of such disorders: facial, vocal, and so on. In some cases, they can become pathological, but they often occur in healthy children.

In infants, tics occur less frequently than in older children. The highest prevalence is observed in boys and girls aged 4 to 6 years. At 10-11 months the symptom is rare. This is caused by the peculiarities of the development of the baby’s nervous system.

Important! By the age of 7-8 years, the formation of the subcortical parts of the brain ends, and the frequency of tics decreases sharply.

Diagnosis of nervous tics

A child's eyes swell after sleep - possible causes, symptoms

The presence of a nervous eye tic can be determined with the naked eye. If you need to establish the exact cause of the disease, you should consult a doctor. First, the parent goes to the pediatrician, then takes a referral for a consultation with a pediatric neurologist.

Sick baby

Depending on the baby’s age and his condition, additional consultation with a psychologist, psychotherapist or psychiatrist may be required. If the baby often blinks his eyes, examinations may be prescribed: EEG of the brain and biochemical blood test.

Main manifestations

The symptom is expressed in frequent blinking or twitching of the eyelid, and can spread to one or both eyes. Eyebrows may also twitch in a newborn baby or an older child. The baby can raise/lower the eyelid either alone or together with the other.

Causes

The occurrence of a slight twitching of the eye for a short time is caused by a muscle spasm and usually does not require close attention; it is enough to eliminate the cause of the external influence. If any part of the eyelids is subject to constant tic, this is the body’s response to some disease or severe stress.

The causes of teak formation include:

Overwork. Increased stress on the eyes leads to overstrain. In newborns, the tic causes a sharp transition from darkness to bright light. Constant operation of the TV, which attracts the child’s attention with a quick change of image. In older children, tics are caused by uncontrolled use of the phone, computer, or tablet.

Stressful state. The child's main social circle consists of family members. Emerging conflicts, divorce of parents, death of one of the members leads to the fact that a mental reaction occurs, the child’s eye and cheek twitch. The reason for the development of tics may be school or forced attendance of additional classes. Adaptation to an expanded circle of communication, emerging conflicts create conditions, but which the psyche does not have time to react in a timely manner

Fright. A sharp sound or the appearance of strangers in the field of view can lead to fright in the baby. The baby's eye twitches and hiccups may begin. At an older age, fear can have serious consequences and last for a long time. If treatment is not started in time, a nervous tic will be accompanied by stuttering and loss of voice.

Consequence of head injury. If, after hitting his head, the baby blinks frequently, his eye twitches, or is capricious, this is a reason to consult a traumatologist. Tic can develop in the postoperative period as a consequence of the effects of anesthesia on the nerve cells of the brain. A nervous tic is accompanied by a spasm of the leg muscles. HE starts walking on his toes

By-effect. Taking medications is associated with a number of side effects, motor tic is one of them. If a child begins to complain of twitching inside the eye, consultation with a specialist is required.

Development of a brain tumor. As the tumor grows, it puts pressure on other parts of the brain and neural stem cells. This provokes the development of tics, usually accompanied by headaches, absent-mindedness, lethargy, and disorientation.

Pathology of the central nervous system. Pathologies of the nervous system can be hereditary or acquired. Their development reduces muscle tone, inhibits reflexes, and increases excitability. Subsequently, muscle hypertension occurs.

Diseases of the visual apparatus. Any inflammatory processes in the eye area contribute to compression and temporary muscle atrophy. Twitching occurs in the area of ​​the lacrimal caruncle. When swelling and inflammation are removed, the tic goes away..

Avitaminosis. If a child's eye twitches, the first thing you should pay attention to is nutrition. Does it contain enough vitamins? Lack of magnesium and vitamins A, D, E, B, and C also lead to tics.

Classification

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Tics are divided into primary and secondary. The latter are caused by some kind of disease. In turn, the primary ones manifest themselves.

Nervous disorders of young children

All ticks are divided into:

1. Facial. The muscles responsible for movements of the nose and face twitch. The symptom may also affect the mouth. Tick ​​can appear on one side or both. Eye tic in a child falls into this category.
2. Vocal. The child makes involuntary sounds. This type is further divided into two. Vocal tics can be simple or complex. In the first case, the baby makes primitive sounds, while in the second, complex words and constructions. In some cases, it can reach the point of coprolalia - shouting obscene expressions. Very common in Tourette syndrome, a rare hereditary disease.
3. Respiratory. Violations manifest themselves in obsessive coughing and loud breathing.
4. Opercular. In this case, the chewing muscles are involved. For example, a person can click his tongue, teeth, slurp, and so on.
5. Manual. The arm muscles are used. A person can rotate his hands, rub his palms, snap his fingers.
6. Focal. Complex tics, including several at once. For example, the eye may twitch, the head and limbs may move simultaneously.

General information

According to numerous surveys, almost 25% of elementary school students have encountered a similar condition. It is curious that nervous tics are observed more often among males than among girls.

Typically, stereotypical movements do not harm children's health and disappear on their own. That's why only twenty percent of children are seen by doctors. And yet, in some situations, tics can negatively affect mental and physical well-being and manifest themselves in adolescence and young adulthood.

An important difference between this condition and seizures in nervous and mental illnesses is that the child is able to reproduce and exercise minimal control over actions. Also, tics do not appear during voluntary movements (in particular, when lifting a mug or swallowing water).

The intensity of the disorder varies depending on the activity, psychological mood, and time of day. The localization of tics may also change (for example, blinking is transformed into chaotic jerking of the shoulders). This does not indicate another disease, but a repetition of an already present one.

Tics can intensify due to children staying in the same position for a long time (watching cartoons, sitting on a bus, at a desk).

Involuntary movements weaken or are eliminated during play activities, in the case of an exciting activity (the baby is reading an interesting book).

If interest in the action has disappeared, then the tics appear again. Their intensity can be controlled, but then rest is needed.

Tics were first described in literature as “the habit of muscles to contract” back in the middle of the 7th century.

Each lobe of the cerebral cortex (CBC) is responsible for certain functions.

Neurons that send signals to skeletal muscles and provide movement are located in the precentral gyrus.

The latter is located in front of the deep groove separating the frontal and parietal lobes of the CBP. On the other side of the groove is the postcentral gyrus, which is responsible for tactile sensations.

Absolutely all nerve centers of the human BSC interact with each other. Speech function, vision, mental and emotional signals - all this, due to various connections, affects motor acts and muscle tone.

There is a subcortical (extrapyramidal) system - a brain structure that does not belong to the CBP. Thanks to neural connections, they are combined into a single “composition” that performs certain tasks:

• control over muscle tone;
• control over conjugate muscle actions;
• body support;
• presence in motivational and cognitive processes.

Any voluntary movement involves simultaneous tension of some muscles and relaxation of others. Moreover, people don’t even understand what exactly needs to be reduced and relaxed. All this is done automatically due to the work of the extrapyramidal system.

What nerves innervate the facial muscles?

Before the contractile act, a signal arises in the motor nerve cells of the precentral gyrus. It spreads through fibers throughout muscle tissue.

The facial muscles receive signals from the facial and trigeminal nerves. The latter transmits innervation to the muscular structures of the temple and jaw.

The facial nerve involves the frontal muscles, as well as the muscles of the eye sockets, cheeks, lips, mouth, and cervical region.

Why tics occur in children - the main factors

Anxious children live in a constant state of stress, as a result of which the cerebral cortex expects trouble.

Gradually, the possibility of voluntary inhibition (suppression) of dangerous neuronal activity disappears. The child's psyche does not receive the necessary rest, so the baby sees nightmares. Because of this, he becomes aggressive, irritable, and less successful in his studies. And children who are initially predisposed to a lack of suppression of unnecessary reactions in CBP begin to suffer from nervous tics.

There is an opinion among parents and teachers that pathological motor acts are common among nervous children. However, increased nervousness occurs in many preschoolers during periods of crisis, and tics occur only in some children.

This disorder is often associated with ADHD, anxiety, depression, and obsessive movements (biting nail plates, twisting hair, etc.). Children with tics are characterized by rapid fatigue, poor tolerance of stuffiness, and anxious and restless sleep.

Involuntary movements can appear in children with “bad” heredity. Scientists have proven that young people are more susceptible to tics than girls.

It is noted that children begin to suffer from this disorder earlier than their mothers and fathers.

If a child is found to have tics, then it can be assumed that the men in his family also suffered from a similar pathology, and the women from obsessive-compulsive neurosis.

The leading source of involuntary motor movements is considered to be an imbalance in the human psyche. CBP sends incorrect signals to muscles that cause them to contract at a rapid pace. At the same time, the child is not able to prevent these actions and stop them.

In medicine, there are 2 types of nervous tics due to mental imbalance: primary (neurogenic or psychogenic) and secondary (symptomatic).

The first type of movement usually becomes the only sign of mental distress. They are most often observed in the period 7-12 years, when children react extremely acutely to psycho-emotional overload.

This category of tics in people over 20 years of age can occur due to constant stressful situations and overwork.

The appearance of primary tics is influenced by the following factors:

• emotional shock - comes first among the provoking factors; involuntary movements appear due to a traumatic event, inadequate child-parent relationships (excessive demands, strict type of upbringing, etc.);
• a disturbed diet - a lack of calcium and magnesium substances, and they are directly involved in muscle contraction, their deficiency leads to cramps and tics;
• September 1st tick - diagnosed in a tenth of schoolchildren; this is associated with adaptation to an educational institution, a new team, and different rules;
• Fatigue, lack of sleep, reading books in insufficient light, passion for gadgets provokes excessive activity of certain areas of the cerebral cortex;
• excessive addiction to psychostimulant substances - coffee, tea, energy drinks activate the work of the CBP, which results in an unstable emotional state, irritation, and mental exhaustion;
• heredity - the latest information demonstrates that if mom or dad suffered from involuntary movements, then the risk of developing such a disorder increases significantly.

Primary nervous tics most often have a positive prognosis. You can expect them to end on their own without the use of medications.

Secondary involuntary actions are usually provoked by a variety of brain dysfunctions, which include:

• encephalitis;
• tumor formations in the brain;
• vascular diseases of the brain (atherosclerosis, impaired cerebral circulation, stroke);
• carbon monoxide damage;
• the use of certain psychotropics, medications for seizures;
• mental disorders (schizophrenia, autistic disorder, etc.);
• trauma during childbirth;
• trigeminal neuralgia (painful tics may appear here);
• vegetative-vascular dystonia - a disease characterized by uncoordinated work of brain areas that are responsible for the functionality of vascular and glandular structures;
• chronic diseases - kidney and liver pathologies, diabetes mellitus, due to which the brain is constantly damaged by toxic metabolic products;
• forced motor acts, fixed in the form of tics (for example, children suffering from tonsillitis are forced to swallow saliva, straining the pharyngeal and cervical muscles; later these actions are stored in the form of tics).

Causes of eye tics

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Nervous eye tics in a child can occur for the following reasons:

1. Biological. In this case, the symptom is provoked by infectious and viral diseases. For example, a common reason why a child's eye twitches is a streptococcal infection. If the immune system fails, the pathogen can infect the nervous system. Hereditary factors play an important role in the development of tics. If parents have had tics before, there is a high probability that their child may also develop them. In some cases, the eyes may begin to twitch due to ARVI.
2. Psychological. It is unlikely that a baby's eye twitches for this reason. Since the condition in the overwhelming majority of cases occurs in older children, this category of causes is the most likely. A child twitches his eyes after conflicts with peers, due to a lack of love from his parents, severe fear or mental stress. Therefore, when the baby is still a baby in age, parents should already pay enough attention to him. This is the key to his health and successful development in the future.

Main manifestations

A nervous tic of the eye in a child is detected at any age, even newborns are no exception. Tic appears due to small and frequent contractions of the muscles of the eyelid. Twitching of one eye of a child occurs more often than both at once.

Cramps occur at rest; physical or emotional stress intensifies them. Older children may themselves say that their eyelids are twitching and complain of discomfort. If the eye twitches constantly, vision deteriorates and there is a feeling of itching and burning.

Additional symptoms depend on the cause of the tic and the age of the child. With neuroses, as the most common cause of pathology, there is a general disturbance in the emotional status of the baby. He becomes distracted, irritable, and fearful. The child eats poorly, sleeps poorly, and cannot do one thing for a long time.

Organic causes of tics have their own specific manifestations, which depend on the location of the pathological process. The baby may complain of headache and nausea. Externally, facial asymmetry and swelling are noted.

Dr. Komarovsky about eye tics

Dr. Komarovsky says that the most common reason why a baby may experience muscle twitching is psychological problems.

Recovered baby

He forbids doing nothing, attributing the symptom to an ordinary grimace, since there is a risk of starting a disease, the treatment of which in the early stages is much simpler.

Important ! A well-known doctor advises first monitoring the baby’s condition. If the twitching continues for more than 2-3 days, then it is better to consult a neurologist and psychotherapist. The doctor also pays special attention to creating a favorable home atmosphere that eliminates nervousness.

Why does the eye twitch in childhood?

Tic occurs in the eye area more often than in other parts of the body. This is explained by some features:

• a large number of muscle and nerve fibers;
• thin skin;
• the need to convey emotions.

The most common cause of eyelid twitching in childhood is emotional stress. A child’s nervous system is very vulnerable, so even weak, in the eyes of an adult, emotional outbursts can cause a tic.

The eyelid may twitch due to general fatigue or nervous tension before an important event.

In addition to neuroses, the cause can be organic brain damage - trauma, inflammation, tumors. Small muscle cramps occur due to a lack of vitamins in the body, primarily potassium and magnesium. The least common are idiopathic tics, which are of hereditary origin.

Additionally, watch a video about nervous tics in a child:

How to cure a child

If your baby starts twitching one of his muscles, the only way to help him is to see a doctor. He will determine whether there is any pathology and select the appropriate medicine. Sometimes muscles can twitch for reasons that are serious enough to require immediate medical attention.

For older children, a special role should be given to a psychological examination, based on which therapy methods are selected.

The key way to treat tics is to use systemic therapy. Its effectiveness is largely influenced by the actions of parents and their willingness to follow the recommendations of specialists. Treatment of the disorder relies on an individual approach.

Disease prevention

If the disease is caused by genetic reasons, then prevention is difficult. It is only possible to determine the risk of individual hereditary diseases. Since the most common cause of eye tics in children is psychological factors, first of all parents should take care of their child and avoid unnecessary unproductive stress.

In general, eye twitching in young children is not a serious problem and in most cases goes away on its own. If the child feels fine, plays, eats well and shows no other reasons for concern, then there is no need to worry.

If the baby exhibits these symptoms for 3 or more days, then it is better to show him to the doctor to prevent truly dangerous conditions. The doctor will select the appropriate treatment, then the prognosis is favorable and the condition will return to normal.