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?
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The primary nerve affected by this infection are the Facial (VII) Nerve and Glossopharyngeal (IX) Nerve
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The patient may be suffering primarily from Bell's palsy as both the symptoms and cause of condition matches
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The Facial (VII) Nerve controls the tongue, facial skin to ear canal, our facial expressions, and secretion of tears and saliva
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Although the Glossopharyngeal (IX) Nerve isn’t a direct factor to what may be Bell's palsy, it also must be factored as a possibility especially since it also contributes to the salivary gland secretion and facial muscle contractions.
Bell’s Palsy | National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. (2023, February 7). Www.ninds.nih.gov. https://www.ninds.nih.gov/health-information/disorders/bells-palsy#:~:text=Bell
H. Kenneth Walker. (2013). Cranial Nerves IX and X: The Glossopharyngeal and Vagus Nerves. Nih.gov; Butterworths. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK386/#:~:text=Glossopharyngeal%20nerve%20lesions%20produce%20difficulty
Tortora, G. J., & Derrickson, B. H. (2017). Tortora’s Principles of anatomy & physiology, global edition (15th ed.). Wiley.
Walker, N. R., Mistry, R. K., & Mazzoni, T. (2020). Facial Nerve Palsy. PubMed; StatPearls Publishing. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK549815/