The 28-year-old male patient's symptoms affect the facial muscles in the left side of his face.
1. Orbicularis oculi
Action: Closes eye
2. Orbicularis oris
Action: Closes and protrudes lips, as in kissing; compresses lips
3. Buccinator
Action: Presses cheeks against teeth and lips, as in whistling, blowing, and sucking; draws corner of mouth laterally; and assists in mastication (chewing) by keeping food between the teeth (and not between teeth and cheeks).
4. Levator labii superioris
Action: Raises upper lip.
5. Zygomaticus major
Action: Draws angle of mouth superiorly and laterally.
Bell's Palsy, which the patient is diagnosed with, occurs due to inflammation and swelling of nerves, usually related to a viral infection.
Some symptoms the patient can also experience, according to Mayo Clinic:
- Drooling
- Pain around jaw or behind ear
- Increased sensitivity to sound on the paralyzed side
- Headache
- Loss of taste
Reference:
Tortora, G. J., & Derrickson, B. (2017). Principles of anatomy & physiology. Fifteenth edition; Wiley Loose-Leaf Print Companion. Hoboken, New Jersey, John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. (2022, May 4). Bell’s Palsy. Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/bells-palsy/symptoms-causes/syc-20370028