Acetazolamide-associated lingual myokymia: A reversible peripheral nerve hyperexcitability phenotype
Esra Demir Ünal1
, Nur Dilara Çağman2
1Department of Neurology, Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt University Faculty of Medicine, Ankara, Türkiye
2Department of Neurology, Ankara Bilkent City Hospital, Ankara, Türkiye
Keywords: Acetazolamide, focal peripheral nerve hyperexcitability, idiopathic intracranial hypertension, lingual myokymia, needle electromyography.
Abstract
Myokymia is a motor phenomenon within the spectrum of peripheral nerve hyperexcitability, characterized by fine, rhythmic, and often sustained involuntary muscle contractions. Clinically, it manifests as superficial undulation or “rippling” and is defined electromyographically by brief, grouped motor unit discharges. This case report presents a 23-year-old female with idiopathic intracranial hypertension who developed clinically isolated lingual myokymia shortly after the initiation of acetazolamide therapy. The diagnosis of lingual myokymia was confirmed by characteristic spontaneous, grouped motor unit discharges on genioglossus needle electromyography. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first detailed case of acetazolamide-related lingual myokymia reported from Türkiye, and it aims to contribute to the differential diagnosis of drug-induced focal peripheral nerve hyperexcitability.
Cite this article as: Demir Ünal E, Çağman ND. Acetazolamide-associated lingual myokymia: A reversible peripheral nerve hyperexcitability phenotype. Parkinson Hast Harek Boz Derg 2026;29(2):76-80. doi: 10.5606/phhb.dergisi.2026.62.
E.D.U., N.D.Ç.: Concept and design, data collection and processing, analysis and interpretation, literature search, writing, critical review; E.D.U.: Supervision.
The authors declared no conflicts of interest with respect to the authorship and/or publication of this article.
The authors received no financial support for the research and/or authorship of this article.
The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
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