Bell's Palsy

Hello readers,

I suffered Bell's Palsy 2 weeks ago. It was a strange experience going through the feeling when I couldn't close my eye properly neither could I smile completely. I have finished my course of steroids day before yesterday and im using only anti inflammatory medication now for some minor occasional pain in the jaw joints in the effected area.

My personal experience makes me feel that Bell Palsy can cause some psychological issues due to the change in personal looks. I am lucky to have my parents, my wife and my family with me to support through the phase. Its very necessary that we keep up the spirits and treat it as any other disease.

As I am going through my circumstances, I went through some literature over the internet to find out more about the disease. So here it goes.

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Bell's Palsy is a form of facial paralysis resulting from a dysfunction of the cranial nerve VII (the facial nerve) that results in the inability to control facial muscles on the affected side. Several conditions can cause facial paralysis, e.g., brain tumor, stroke, and Lyme disease. However, if no specific cause can be identified, the condition is known as Bell's palsy. Named after Scottish anatomist Charles Bell, who first described it, Bell's palsy is the most common acute mononeuropathy (disease involving only one nerve) and is the most common cause of acute facial nerve paralysis.

Bell's palsy is defined as an idiopathic unilateral facial nerve paralysis, usually self-limiting. The hallmark of this condition is a rapid onset of partial or complete palsy that often occurs overnight. In rare cases (1%), it can occur bilaterally resulting in total facial paralysis.^[1]

It is thought that an inflammatory condition leads to swelling of the facial nerve. The nerve travels through the skull in a narrow bone canal beneath the ear. Nerve swelling and compression in the narrow bone canal are thought to lead to nerve inhibition, damage or death. No readily identifiable cause for Bell's palsy has been found.

Corticosteroids have been found to improve outcomes while anti-viral drugs have not.^[2] Early treatment is necessary for steroids to be effective. Most people recover spontaneously and achieve near-normal to normal functions. Many show signs of improvement as early as 10 days after the onset, even without treatment.

Often the eye in the affected side cannot be closed. The eye must be protected from drying up, or the cornea may be permanently damaged resulting in impaired vision. In some cases denture wearers experience some discomfort.

Link : <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell%27s_palsy>

Link : <http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Bells-palsy/Pages/Introduction.aspx>