| dc.description.abstract | Bell's palsy is the most frequent acute mononeuropathy, or
condition affecting a single nerve, and the most prevalent
diagnosis related with facial nerve weakness/paralysis. It
is named after Scottish anatomist Sir Charles Bell.
Bell's palsy has a rapid onset (<72 hours), can affect men,
women, and children, but is more frequent in people aged
15 to 45, individuals with diabetes, upper respiratory
illnesses, or impaired immune systems, and women who
are pregnant.1 The condition causes a partial or complete
inability to move the affected side of the face's facial
muscles voluntarily. There is currently no known etiology.
Strokes, brain tumors, tumors of the parotid gland or
infratemporal fossa, cancer of the facial nerve, and
systemic and infectious disorders like zoster, sarcoidosis,
and Lyme disease are all possible causes of facial
paralysis.2 The facial paresis/paralysis can produce
substantial transient oral incompetence as well as an
inability to seal the eyelid, which can lead to eye damage.
Bell's palsy is diagnosed when no other medical cause of
facial weakness can be found. | en_US |
