Hemifacial spasms and involuntary facial movements. Role of magnetic resonance in the diagnostic work-up. A case report

Caution is required when dealing with patients presenting hemifacial spasm as the symptom is common to many disorders (tumours, herpes zoster, a frigore paralysis, neurovascular conflict...). Often no reasonable cause of the spasm is found, but treatment must be attempted because hemifacial spasm can be highly debilitating. We describe a case of hemifacial spasm, initially deemed idiopathic, in which MRI demonstrated neurovascular conflict as the cause. It is not always easy to find a clear MRI pattern, but if the scan identifies the tortuousness of the arteries in the vicinity of the VII nerve root exit, it is highly probable that this is the true cause of hemifacial spasm. Even when it is not possible to identify this pattern, neurovascular compression cannot be ruled out. The good results of microvascular decompression in patients without a typical MRI pattern suggest that MRI is specific, but not always sensitive. There is no consensus in the literature on the sensitivity of MRI in the detection of neurovascular compression and values vary widely. It is generally believed that experience and different performance of the MR systems strongly influence the diagnosis of neurovascular conflict.