Higher prevalence of obsessive-compulsive symptoms in patients with blepharospasm than in patients with hemifacial spasm.

OBJECTIVE

The prevalences of obsessive-compulsive symptoms in patients suffering from blepharospasm and in those with hemifacial spasm were determined. The two conditions have similar symptoms, but only blepharospasm is etiologically linked to basal ganglia dysfunction.

METHOD: After being interviewed with the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R, 13 patients with blepharospasm and 13 with hemifacial spasm completed the SCL-90-R and the Hamburg Obsession/Compulsion Inventory-Short Form.

RESULTS

Patients in the blepharospasm group had significantly more obsessive-compulsive symptoms, as indicated by higher scores on the Hamburg Obsession/Compulsion Inventory-Short Form, than the patients with hemifacial spasm. SCL-90-R scores were in the normal range for nine and eight categories, respectively (out of nine).

CONCLUSIONS

The findings provide additional support for the hypothesis that obsessive-compulsive symptoms are related to basal ganglia dysfunction.