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 THAT WERE AFFECTED
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Frontalis
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ACTION - Elevates eyebrows, wrinkles skin of forehead
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Orbicularis oris
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ACTION - Closes mouth, compresses and protrudes lips
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Orbicularis oculi
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ACTION - Closes eyelids tightly, Compresses lacrimal sac
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Buccinator
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ACTION - compresses cheek into the teeth for chewing
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Corrugator
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ACTION - protecting the eyes from bright sunlight or rain
MECHANISM OF MUSCLE WEAKNESS
The inflammation from Bell’s Palsy causes a temporary loss of sensory and or motor function . Not only does this happen, but it can also lead to a permanent nerve degeneration afterwards. This is due to the inflammation of the facial nerve which leads to the compression along the narrow segment of the fallopian canal (Zandian, 2014).
OTHER SYMPTOMS
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Drooling
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Headache
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Loss of taste
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Increased sensitivity to sound on the affected side
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Changes in the amount of tears and saliva you produce
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Pain around the jaw or in or behind your ear on the affected side
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Difficulty making facial expressions, such as closing your eye or smiling