title: Frequency of psychiatric disorders in blepharospasm does not differ from hemifacial spasm.
abstract: Dias FM, Doyle F, Kummer A, Cardoso F, Fontenelle LF, Teixeira AL. Frequency of psychiatric disorders in blepharospasm does not differ from hemifacial spasm.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To compare the frequency of psychiatric disorders and the severity of psychiatric symptoms between patients with blepharospasm (BS) and hemifacial spasm (HS).
  
  
  METHODS
  BS is a type of primary focal dystonia characterised by recurrent and involuntary eye blinking. HS is a condition with different pathophysiology but similar clinical phenotype. Twenty-two patients with BS and 29 patients with HS participated in this study. They underwent a comprehensive psychiatric evaluation that included a structured clinical interview for current psychiatric diagnosis according to Diagnostic Statistical Manual, fourth edition (DSM-IV) (MINI-Plus) and psychometric scales, including the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (YBOCS), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD), the Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAS) and the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS).
  
  
  RESULTS
  BS and HS groups did not differ in most demographic and clinical parameters, such as gender, age and length of symptoms. The frequency of psychiatric disorders and the severity of psychiatric symptoms were similar in both groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  BS does not seem to have more psychiatric disorders than HS.
authors.affiliation: 1Neuropsychiatric Branch, Neurology Unit, University Hospital, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
authors.forename: Fernando Machado
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Dias
authors.affiliation: 2Movement Disorders Clinic, Neurology Unit, University Hospital, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
authors.forename: Flávia
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Doyle
authors.affiliation: 1Neuropsychiatric Branch, Neurology Unit, University Hospital, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
authors.forename: Arthur
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kummer
authors.affiliation: 2Movement Disorders Clinic, Neurology Unit, University Hospital, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
authors.forename: Francisco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Cardoso
authors.affiliation: 3Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
authors.forename: Leonardo Franklin
authors.initials: LF
authors.lastname: Fontenelle
authors.affiliation: 1Neuropsychiatric Branch, Neurology Unit, University Hospital, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
authors.forename: Antonio Lucio
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Teixeira