What Is Facial Nerve Paralysis?
Our face is our identity, and our primary means of conveying our emotions. When something goes wrong with our ability to move the muscles of our face, verily it feels like a terrible curse. Don’t worry, the friendly neighborhood otolaryngologist will help you out.
What Is It?
Facial nerve paralysis is a kind of issue in our nervous system that paralyzes or freezes part of our face. Specifically, the seventh cranial nerve is the one controlling all our facial muscles, so if anything happens to that nerve, parts of our face get fixed in one gesture. This can be extremely grotesque, especially if it happens only on one side of the face.
The symptoms of facial paralysis can be seen mostly around our brow, cheek, eye, and mouth. The portion of the face that is affected by the paralysis can be completely loosened, or it can twitch or vibrate from time to time. It can also be fixed in one gesture. This can happen in any part of the face including those mentioned above.
How to Cure It?
If you notice anything like that in your face, you should immediately get to an otolaryngologist — that is, an ENT specialist. They will give you certain tests to see if it really is a nerve-related matter (sometimes it isn’t, the muscle itself may be faulty).
These tests may include MRI, electroneurography, or the stapedius reflex test. The MRI will probably be done with a dye injection to color your blood first. The electroneurography, if prescribed, should be done within 14 days of the first time you’ve noticed the issue. The stapedius test is done by audiologists (doctors who test your ear functions) — this test is required since often a hearing-specific nerve is also hit by paralysis (though you may not have any problem in hearing).
Once diagnosed certainly as a case of facial nerve paralysis, your doctor may give you certain medications. These medications will include nerve-stimulating agents and will almost certainly have some side effects. The otolaryngologist should be able to balance them out in the prescription with other buffer drugs. Anyway, the recovery could take some time. Also, since it is a nervous issue, having great mental positivity will help a lot in recovery.
Cure Your Problem
Get reach us at Oklahoma Otolaryngology Associates, LLC in OKC. The expert team will provide various treatments option to cure sleep apnea, neck and throat problems and allergies.
**Disclaimer: The information on this page is not intended to be a doctor's advice, nor does it create any form of patient-doctor relationship.