ACTIVITY 4

SUNIEGA, John Vincent - Activity 4

SUNIEGA, John Vincent - Activity 4

by John Vincent Suniega -
Number of replies: 0

ACTIVITY 4

This is patient AM, 28-year-old male who came in the ER because of drooping of his left face. He said he woke up and he could not move his left face.

He has no other muscle weakness. He is conscious and coherent although he had a little difficulty speaking because the left side of his lips drooped. He had normal blood pressure and he had no other co-morbidities. He was diagnosed to have Bell’s palsy. Name 5 muscles which are affected and list its actions. Describe the mechanism of his muscle weakness. What other symptoms could the patient exhibit as a result of facial muscle weakness?

 

MUSCLES AFFECTED BY BELL’S PALSY

  1. Frontalis - Action: moves up the scalp and eyebrows

  2. Orbicularis oris -  Action: puckering of lips and closing of the mouth 

  3. Orbicularis oculi - Action: closing of eyes and blinking

  4. Buccinator - Action: compresses the cheeks against the teeth during mastication and whistling

  5. Platysma - Action: draws the corners of the mouth downwards 

 

MECHANISM OF MUSCLE WEAKNESS

Bell’s Palsy is a disorder that affects the facial nerve. This is an inflammatory process of the facial nerve leading to its compression along a narrow segment of the fallopian canal. This inflammation then causes a temporary loss of sensory or motor function but may eventually lead to permanent nerve degradation (Zandian et al., 2014).

Reference: 

Zandian, A., Osiro, S., Hudson, R., Ali, I., Matusz, P., Tubbs, S., & Loukas, M. (2014, January 20). The neurologist’s dilemma: A comprehensive clnal review of Bell’s Palsy withemphases on current management trends. Med Sci Monit. 10.12659/MSM.889876

 

OTHER SYMPTOMS EXHIBITED AFTER FACIAL MUSCLE WEAKNESS

  • Disordered movement of the muscles that control facial expression

  • Loss of feeling in the face

  • Headache

  • Tearing

  • Drooling

  • Loss of the sense of taste on the front ⅔ of the tongue

  • Hypersensitivity to sound in the affected ear

  • Inability to close the eye on the affected side of the face 

Reference:

Bell’s Palsy. (2021, August 8). John Hopkins Medicine. https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/bells-palsy