Your patient recently had a viral infection and now she cannot move the muscles on the right side of her face. In addition, she is experiencing a loss of taste and dry mouth and she cannot close her right eye. Which cranial nerves have been affected by the viral infection?
The resulting characteristics from the viral infection all seem to be pointing toward the manifestation of Bell’s Palsy. This can be said because Bell’s Palsy is a form of facial paralysis or weakness on one side of the face. With this, those afflicted with Bell’s Palsy suffer from a dysfunction of the facial nerve (the 7th cranial nerve), which explains the one-sided inability of muscle movement as the facial nerve directs facial muscles such as the eyelid muscle and the cheek muscle (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, 2018). Furthermore, the facial nerve also transmits taste sensations and carries nerve impulses to the salivary glands, which is why Bell’s Palsy may entail a loss of taste and dry mouth (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, 2018).
Reference:
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. (2018, June). Bell’s Palsy fact sheet. https://www.ninds.nih.gov/bells-palsy-fact-sheet