Bell’s palsy
- Muscles affected:
- Frontalis – Elevates eyebrows, wrinkles skin of forehead
- Orbicularis oculi – Closes eyes
- Orbicularis oris – Closes mouth, purses and protrudes lips
- Buccinator – Aids mastication, tenses cheeks in blowing and whistling, aids closure of mouth
- Platysma – Depresses the mandible and lower lip and tenses the skin of the anterior neck
- Mechanism of his muscle weakness:
- An inflammatory condition of the facial nerve that results in compression along this constrained section of the fallopian canal is the most likely cause of Bell's palsy. Although this inflammation initially results in a brief loss of sensory or motor function, it has the potential to subsequently induce permanent nerve degeneration (Jackson et al., 2023).
- Other symptoms may include:
- Rapid onset of mild weakness to total paralysis on one side of your face — occurring within hours to days
- Facial droop and difficulty making facial expressions, such as closing your eye or smiling
- Drooling
- Pain around the jaw or in or behind your ear on the affected side
- Increased sensitivity to sound on the affected side
- Headache
- A loss of taste
- Changes in the amount of tears and saliva you produce
REFERENCES:
Zandian, A., Osiro, S., Hudson, R., Ali, I. M., Matusz, P., Tubbs, S. R., & Loukas, M. (2014, January 20). The neurologist’s dilemma: A comprehensive clinical review of Bell’s Palsy, with emphasis on current management trends. Medical science monitor : international medical journal of experimental and clinical research. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3907546/#:~:text=The%20most%20probable%20mechanism%20of,nerve%20degeneration%20later%20%5B20%5D.
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