Bell's Palsy

Bell's Palsy: Introduction

Bell's Palsy: Bell's palsy is a form of facial paralysis resulting from damage to the 7th (facial) cranial nerve. (Source: excerpt from NINDS Bell's Palsy Information Page: NINDS) ... more about Bell's Palsy.

Bell's Palsy: A usually temporary facial nerve disorder where a part or all of the face becomes suddenly paralysed. More detailed information about the symptoms, causes, and treatments of Bell's Palsy is available below.

Symptoms of Bell's Palsy

• One-sided facial paralysis
• Two-sided facial paralysis
• Eyelid paralysis
• Inability to close one eye
• Smiling difficulty
• more symptoms...»

See full list of 26 symptoms of Bell's Palsy

Home Diagnostic Testing

Home medical testing related to Bell's Palsy:

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Bell's Palsy: Complications

Review possible medical complications related to Bell's Palsy:

• Permanent facial paralysis (see Facial paralysis) - less than 20% of cases.
• more complications...»

Medical Textbooks Online about Bell's Palsy

Book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

Diagnostic Tests for Bell's Palsy

• Head x-ray
• Head CT scan
• more tests...»

Read more about tests for Bell's Palsy

Wrongly Diagnosed with Bell's Palsy?

• Misdiagnosis of Bell's Palsy
• Failure to diagnose Bell's Palsy
• Hidden causes of Bell's Palsy (possibly wrongly diagnosed)
• Undiagnosed: Bell's Palsy

Bell's Palsy: Undiagnosed Conditions

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• more undiagnosed conditions...»

Misdiagnosis and Bell's Palsy

Vitamin B12 deficiency under-diagnosed: The condition of Vitamin B12 deficiency is a possible misdiagnosis of various conditions, such as multiple sclerosis (see symptoms of multiple...read more »

Ramsay Hunt syndrome- recovery depends on nerve damage: The Ramsay Hunt syndrome is herpes zoster affecting the geniculate ganglion. This syndrome develops when the varicella virus becomes reactivated from the geniculate...read more »

Read more about Misdiagnosis and Bell's Palsy

Bell's Palsy: Research Doctors & Specialists

Research related physicians and medical specialists:

• Nerve Specialists:
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  • Neurology (Brain/CNS Specialists)
  • Pediatric Neurology (Child Brain Specialist)
  • Spinal Cord Injury Medicine
• more specialists...»

Other doctor, physician and specialist research services:

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• Research local specialists including ratings, affiliations, and sanctions.

Causes of Bell's Palsy

• Herpes simplex virus
• Salivary gland cancer - Facial paralysis
• Melkersson-Rosenthal Syndrome - Partial facial paralysis
• Alternating Hemiplegia - facial muscle paralysis
• Myopathy
• more causes...»

See full list of 86 causes of Bell's Palsy

More information about causes of Bell's Palsy:

• Medications, drugs, or substances causing Bell's Palsy (3 listings)
• Underlying causes of Bell's Palsy
• Bell's Palsy as a complication caused by other conditions
• Bell's Palsy as a symptom
• Medical news summaries relating to Causes of Bell's Palsy

Treatments for Bell's Palsy

• Steroids
• Acyclovir
• Prednisone
• Corticosteroids - for inflammation
• Pain relief
• more treatments...»

See full list of 17 treatments for Bell's Palsy

Latest Treatments for Bell's Palsy

• Surgical release
• High dose oral steroids
• Acyclovir
• more treatments...»

Read more about the latest treatments for Bell's Palsy

News Archives for Bell's Palsy

Medical news articles related to Bell's Palsy include:

• Antiviral Won't Improve Bell's Palsy Outcome
• more health news...»

Source: HealthDay News

Evidence Based Medicine Research for Bell's Palsy

Medical research articles related to Bell's Palsy include:

• Is aciclovir used in Bell?s palsy anymore?
• Is there any evidence of any therapy to improve a residual facial weakness following Bell's palsy in a 45 yr old woman who was treated with steroids and aciclovir on presentation 6 months ago?
• Are adults taking corticosteroids for adrenal insufficiency at risk of osteoporosis?
• Economic evaluation of early administration of prednisolone and/or aciclovir for the treatment of Bell`s palsy
• Facial nerve (diagram)
• more research...»

Click here to find more evidence-based articles on the TRIP Database

Videos for Bell's Palsy

Patient Surveys for Bell's Palsy

• Patient Profile Survey
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• Survey about the symptoms of your Bell's Palsy
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Prognosis for Bell's Palsy

Prognosis for Bell's Palsy: Good. Many improve within 2 weeks, 80% within 3 months.

More about prognosis of Bell's Palsy

Reseach about Bell's Palsy

Visit our research pages for current research about Bell's Palsy treatments.

Statistics for Bell's Palsy

• Medical statistics for Bell's Palsy
• Prevalence and incidence statistics for Bell's Palsy
• Death and Mortality statistics for Bell's Palsy
• Society statistics for Bell's Palsy

Bell's Palsy: Broader Related Topics

• Possibly autoimmune disease
• Nerve conditions
• more types...»

Types of Bell's Palsy

Stories from Users Related to Bell's Palsy

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User Interactive Forums

Read about other experiences, ask a question about Bell's Palsy, or answer someone else's question, on our message boards:

• I can not get a diagnosis. Please help.
• Tell us your medical story.
• Share your misdiagnosis story.
• What is the best treatment for this?
• See all the forums.

Article Excerpts about Bell's Palsy

Bell's palsy is a form of facial paralysis resulting from damage to the 7th (facial) cranial nerve. (Source: excerpt from NINDS Bell's Palsy Information Page: NINDS)

Definitions of Bell's Palsy:

A syndrome characterized by the acute onset of unilateral FACIAL PARALYSIS which progresses over a 2-5 day period. Weakness of the orbicularis oculi muscle and resulting incomplete eye closure may be associated with corneal injury. Pain behind the ear often precedes the onset of paralysis. This condition may be associated with HERPESVIRUS 1, HUMAN infection of the facial nerve. (Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p1376) - (Source - Diseases Database)

Bell's Palsy is listed as a "rare disease" by the Office of Rare Diseases (ORD) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This means that Bell's Palsy, or a subtype of Bell's Palsy, affects less than 200,000 people in the US population.
Source - National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Ophanet, a consortium of European partners, currently defines a condition rare when it affects 1 person per 2,000. They list Bell's Palsy as a "rare disease".
Source - Orphanet