Affected Muscles
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Frontalis: Raises eyebrows, wrinkling of skin on forehead
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Orbicularis oculi: Closes eyelids, throws skin around orbit into folds to protect eyeball
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Orbicularis oris: Closes, purses, and protracts the lips; closes the mouth
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Buccinator: Pulls corner of the mouth laterally, shortens cheek vertically and horizontally
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Platysma: Tenses skin of neck and depresses the mandible
Mechanism of Muscle Weakness
- The exact reason for the occurrence of Bell's palsy is still not clear. Sudden onset could be attributed to having a viral infection, causing the inflammation of the nerves. One of these nerves would be the 7th cranial nerve, the facial nerve. This results in the nerve to not function properly, causing weakness of temporary muscle paralysis.
Other symptoms
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Tearing
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Drooling
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Loss of taste on the front 2/3 of the tongue
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Hypersensitivity to sound
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Pain around the jaw
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Pain behind the ear on the affected
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Headaches
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Difficulty or loss of ability to speak
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Blurred or double vision
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Partial or total loss of one or more senses
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Neck stiffness