Walsh & Hoyt: Eyelid Nystagmus

Several studies have defined the anatomic and physiologic links between eye and eyelid movements, and have evaluated the common effects of disease on both. Upward movements of the eyelids frequently accompany upward movements of vertical nystagmus. In fact, the absence of lid nystagmus in a patient with upbeat nystagmus may suggest disconnection between the premotor signals for the superior rectus and levator palpebrae superioris, implicating the region between the riMLF and the oculomotor nucleus. For the same reasons, lid nystagmus unaccompanied by vertical eye nystagmus may reflect midbrain lesions. In patients with long-standing compression of the central caudal nucleus, ""midbrain ptosis"" may occur, and this may lead to lid nystagmus.