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Content is anchored to trusted sources where available, but Compass has not yet been clinically reviewed. It provides general information rather than medical advice.

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Movement and daily function

Fasciculation

Small visible flickers or ripples under the skin as individual bundles of muscle fibres twitch.

What it means

A twitch you can often see but usually cannot feel much of. They happen in healthy people too, especially when tired. On their own they mean very little; what a neurologist looks at is the pattern, and what else is found alongside them.

Why you might hear it

  • It is one of the things examined for and mentioned in reports.
  • It appears constantly in forum discussions, often out of proportion to its meaning.

People who may help

Where Compass goes into this

About this explanation

These are plain explanations of words you may come across, not advice about your own situation. Where a word matters to a decision, the question pages go into it properly, and your own team is the place to take it.