Muscle Twitching: When to Worry About ALS and Other Serious Conditions

What are muscle fasciculations and where do they commonly occur?
How do physical activity and electrolyte imbalance lead to muscle fasciculations?
What role do stress and anxiety play in causing muscle twitching?
How can caffeine and alcohol contribute to muscle fasciculations?
What is Benign Fasciculation Syndrome and how is it diagnosed?
Which lifestyle changes can help manage benign fasciculation syndrome?
In what rare cases can chronic fasciculations indicate serious conditions?
How are serious conditions like ALS and MS linked to muscle twitching?
Important Highlights (One Sentence Each)
Muscle fasciculations are small, involuntary muscle twitches, often harmless and commonly seen in eyelids.
Intense physical activity and electrolyte imbalance, especially a deficiency in potassium, are frequent causes of muscle twitching.
Stress and anxiety can lead to motor neuron hyperexcitability, increasing the likelihood of fasciculations.
Stimulants like caffeine and substances like alcohol can trigger muscle twitching.
Benign Fasciculation Syndrome, accounting for 70% of chronic cases, is diagnosed after ruling out diseases like ALS and MS.
Lifestyle modifications, including avoiding alcohol and caffeine, can help manage benign fasciculation syndrome.
Chronic fasciculations can be a symptom of serious conditions like ALS, MS, and myasthenia gravis, usually accompanied by muscle weakness and atrophy.

[@aureliomartinez2633]

For almost 10 years calf muscle twitching thousand of dollars specialized doctors exams so far nobody had given me answer it seems that this muscle fasciculations are totally new

[@borisvujasinovic1860]

In my case it's for at least 7 years. A consequence of anxiety. I saw a neurologist 5 years ago, and the other one, too. When there are no other symptoms such as athropy, muscle weakness or slurred speech etc., they usually don't order ENMG.

[@aureliomartinez2633]

@@borisvujasinovic1860 I have been through all exams available so far nothing I had anxiety about two years before started to twitching I have thought that my anxiety was part of my past but today I don't know how to know I'm feeling 99 por cent because of the twitching

[@Manu-gz9fy]

Wie lange ist die Zeitspanne bis man von gutartigen Faszikulationen ausgehen kann?

[@borisvujasinovic1860]

If there are no other clinical neurological issues such as muscle atrophy, weakness, slurred speech and stuff like that and if such condition lasts a year or more (only fasciculations, with no other clinical neurological symptoms) then it's benign.

[@theuniversalguy]

I enjoy it