| progressive torsion spasm | A genetic, environmental, or idiopathic disorder, usually beginning in childhood or adolescence, marked by muscular contractions that distort the spine, limbs, hips, and sometimes the cranial-innervated muscles. The abnormal movements are increased by excitement and, at least initially, abolished by sleep. The musculature is hypertonic when in action, hypotonic when at rest. Hereditary forms usually begin with involuntary posturing of the foot or hand (autosomal recessive form ) or of the neck or trunk (autosomal dominant form ); both forms may progress to produce contortions of the entire body. Synonym: progressive torsion spasm, torsion disease of childhood, torsion dystonia, Ziehen-Oppenheim disease. (05 Mar 2000) |
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| histrionic spasm | Involuntary twitching of the facial muscles, sometimes unilateral. Synonym: Bell's spasm, convulsive tic, facial spasm, histrionic spasm, mimic convulsion, mimic spasm, mimic tic, palmus, prosopospasm. (05 Mar 2000) |
| sewing spasm | An occupational dystonia occurring in the fingers of women who sew. Synonym: sewing spasm. (05 Mar 2000) |
| spasm | 1. <physiology> A sudden, violent, involuntary contraction of a muscle or a group of muscles, attended by pain and interference with function, producing involuntary movement and distortion. 2. A sudden but transitory constriction of a passage, canal or orifice. Origin: L. Spasmus, Gr. Spasmos (18 Nov 1997) |
| spasm of accommodation | Excessive contraction of the ciliary muscle. (05 Mar 2000) |
| nictitating spasm | Involuntary spasmodic winking. Synonym: spasmus nictitans, winking spasm. (05 Mar 2000) |
| nodding spasm | In infants, a drop of the head on the chest due to loss of tone in the neck muscles as in epilepsia nutans, or to tonic spasm of anterior neck muscles as in West's syndrome, in adults, a nodding of the head from clonic spasm's of the sternomastoid muscles. Synonym: salaam attack, salaam spasm, spasmus nutans. (05 Mar 2000) |
| dancing spasm | A spasmodic affection of the muscles of the lower extremities. Synonym: Bamberger's disease, dancing spasm, Gowers disease. (05 Mar 2000) |
| synclonic spasm | Clonic spasm of two or more muscles. (05 Mar 2000) |
| diffuse oesophageal spasm | A disorder characterised by episodic contractions of the oesophagus. The oesophageal spasms fail to effectively propel food to the stomach. Symptoms may be confused with angina. Common symptoms include chest pains, epigastric pain, heartburn, pain on swallowing and difficulty swallowing. Treatment includes the use of sublingual nitroglycerin and calcium channel blockers. (27 Sep 1997) |
| infantile spasm | Brief (1 to 3 seconds) muscular spasm's in infants with West's syndrome, which often appear as nodding or salaam spasm's. Synonym: salaam convulsions. (05 Mar 2000) |
| intention spasm | A spasmodic contraction of the muscles occurring when a voluntary movement is attempted. (05 Mar 2000) |
| occupational spasm | Professional spasm, obsolete term for occupational dystonia. (05 Mar 2000) |
| oesophageal spasm | A disorder of the motility of the oesophagus characterised by pain or forceful eructations after swallowing food. Oesophageal muscle contractions are of excessive force and duration. Chest pain can be confused with symptoms of cardiac or other origin. (05 Mar 2000) |
| oesophageal spasm, diffuse | A motor disorder of the oesophagus characterised by chest pain and dysphagia. Pathogenesis is unclear. Strong, nonpropulsive contractions of the oesophagus evoked by deglutition occur, especially in the elderly. (12 Dec 1998) |