Bell’s Palsy is a disease where the Cranial Nerve VII or the facial nerve dysfunctions. And then, the person is unable to move one side of his face. The ability to express by facial expressions is debilitated.
Causes of the dysfunction can be diabetes, upper respiratory tract infection among others. Bell’s Palsy is named after Sir Charles Bell, a Scottish surgeon who discovered this disease.
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What Is Bell’s Palsy? How To Treat Bell’s Palsy?
Bell’s Palsy is a type of facial paralysis. Symptoms include drooping of the eye, change in taste, and pain around the ears. Bell’s Palsy is diagnosed as a viral infection that results in swelling. After ruling out other causes, and having a symptom on the facial appearance the diagnosis is made. Some other conditions where facial paralysis occurs are Lyme disease, brain tumor, stroke, Ramsay Hunt syndrome, and sinusitis inflammation.
Corticosteroids are primarily given an antiviral medication is added to provide relief. The eye should be protected from drying up by the use of an eye patch or eye drops. Surgery is not recommended. Up to 70% of one side of the face may paralyze. The age group in which this occurs is between 15 and 60. In rare cases, complete facial paralysis may occur.
Sound sensitivity is one more common symptom that occurs with Bell’s Palsy. Two viruses of the herpes family are known to cause the disease.
Covid 19 vaccines of Moderna and Pfizer have shown that Bell’s Palsy must be monitored for by FDA in December 2020, US.
When a Facial Paralysis is a Stroke
All strokes accompany facial paralysis with numbing of the hands and legs, also the upper part of the face is usually normal. Wrinkling on the forehead may occur.
Lyme Disease
Lyme disease is caused by an insect bite, namely a tick. Lyme Borreollis. It is accompanied by fever, rash, migraine, headache, etc.
Ramsay Hunt’s paralysis
This is a disease similar to Bell’s Palsy but is a very mild Parkinson’s Disease. It is named after James Ramsay Hunt.
Treatment For Bell’s Palsy
Corticosteroids such as prednisone are administered and in six months are able to cure the disease. Early diagnosis, in 3 days and beyond, helps to reduce time to recover by up 14%.
Antivirals such as acyclovir are prescribed to reduce the symptoms.
Eye protection
In case of inability to close the eyes and blink. It is vital to make sure the eyes are well lubricated and the drooping of the eye does not damage the nerves or lacrimal function.
Physiotherapy
Physiotherapy is prescribed for the disease and for any hearing sensitivity, Surgery is not done for Bell’s Palsy.
Alternative medicine
Acupuncture and acupressure can work on the problems. However, the success rate and cure possibility are not documented.
The Disease
Bell’s Palsy is caused by several possible preconditions. It does not require immediate and urgent medication. And can be diagnosed over a period of considered time. There are several similar and yet different diseases that have symptoms that are the same.
It must be exhausted of other diseases and then cured by the use of the two medications mentioned.
The Immediate Safeguards
In case a person has a doubt if he has the disease, he must ensure that the posture of the neck and face is correct and his eyes are blinking and no dryness occurs.
Thereafter a visit to a doctor who is qualified to see the problem and diagnose the symptoms must be approached. A person who is unable to be sure that no other disease exists but the symptoms can say it is Bell’s Palsy.
Upper respiratory infections and diabetes are common problems in contemporary times, and so the derivative of Bell’s Palsy may occur.
As it is not an immediate threat to damage further, once diagnosed, it can be cured over a long period of months.
Diseases that are more pressing if diagnosed are Stroke which can be life-threatening and can permanently damage the entire nervous system or the brain.
Finally, if the Cranial Nerve VII, which is the facial nerve, is found to be afflicting the disease then it is a curable disease. Ruling out the other possibilities may have taken time, however.
Bell’s Palsy is a condition of the facial nerve which affects the twitching of the muscles of the face and stops the ability to move the muscles on one side of the face.
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