What Is Facial Paralysis?
Facial paralysis can occur suddenly or develop gradually, affecting one side of the face or both. Depending on the case, the patient may have muscles that are weakened or completely unable to move. This can cause a variety of symptoms, such as:
- Drooping of the face
- Inability to smile
- Drooling
- Inability to close eyelids
- Facial asymmetry
The nerve condition can result due to trauma, a tumor, infection, surgery, stroke, or Bell’s Palsy. Receiving a diagnosis of facial paralysis can be extremely upsetting and confusing. While it can be difficult to treat, our skilled surgeons can help restore basic function to many patients suffering from the condition.
Treatment for Facial Paralysis
To determine if treatment will help your condition, and which is the best method, your doctor will consider how long you have had symptoms, the cause of your facial paralysis, the extent of the damage, and the likelihood of a recovery. Not all patients need facial reanimation treatment—some cases will gradually improve on their own with time. Those who qualify for surgery typically have permanent facial paralysis and have already tried conservative forms of treatment without seeing improvement.
Common treatments that can help improve problems caused by the paralysis as well as the overall facial appearance include:
- Muscle transfer
- Neural treatment techniques
- Nerve-grafting techniques
- Surgical lift procedure, such as an eyelid lift, brow lift, or facelift
- Tear duct surgery to improve dry eye, gold weight placement to restore eyelid closure
