If you are not familiar with Bell’s palsy, it is a condition characterized by sudden, temporary weakness or paralysis of the facial muscles, typically on one side of the face. This results from inflammation or compression of the facial nerve (cranial nerve VII), which controls facial expressions and some functions like tear production, salivation, and taste.
An illustration of a patient who has Bell’s palsy.
Quick question: which side is the affected side? (see the end of post for the answer)
Noticeable Symptoms:
It is characteristic of Bell’s palsy patients to have muscles on the affected half of the face frozen with no wrinkles:
- Facial Droop: One side of the face may appear drooped, affecting the eyelid, eyebrow, and mouth.
- Difficulty with Facial Movements: As a result, smiling, blinking, or raising an eyebrow on the affected side may become difficult or impossible.
Other symptoms may include:
- Reduced Tear and Saliva Production: The affected side may produce fewer tears and less saliva. Thus dry eye and mouth may occur.
- Taste Changes: There may be altered or reduced sense of taste on one side of the tongue. Therefore the sense of taste and feeling is inhibited for half the tongue.
- Ear Sensitivity: Some patients may have sensitivity to sound (hyperacusis) on the affected side.
Causes:
The exact cause of Bell’s Palsy is unknown, some may not have any identifiable causes, and many cases may be:
- linked to viral infections such as herpes simplex virus (HSV).
- Inflammation or swelling of the facial nerve.
Prognosis:
- Most people recover fully within 3–6 months without treatment (the inflammation is reduced by our body’s immune system, and full recovery is expected), although some may experience residual symptoms with few experiencing permanent side effects.
- Early treatment with corticosteroids can improve outcomes and shorten the length of the disease.
- Acupuncture is most helpful to prevent permanent muscle stiffness and paralyzation.
When to Seek Help:
As soon as possible. Since you don’t know how long Bell’s palsy symptoms will last, and there is a chance the muscle stiffness or paralyzation may become permanent, early treatment will aid in prevention.
If you experience sudden facial drooping, consult a healthcare provider promptly. Similar symptoms can also occur in other serious conditions, like stroke, and require immediate medical attention.
The World Health Organization recognized Acupuncture and its modalities to be the most effective treatment for Bell’s palsy (if you are interested, there is a large clinical trial for this: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4431843/)
Case study: Patient with Bell’s palsy for 30+ years
Our clinic has developed a very effective treatment program for Bell’s palsy, effectively reducing the inflammation that causes the disease, and thus shortening the recovery time. Remarkably, some long term damage caused by Bell’s palsy has also been effectively treated with acupuncture.
Recently, we helped a patient affected by Bell’s palsy for 30+ years recover their mobility. The patient was diagnosed with Bell’s palsy at age 2, and has been in physical therapy and tried other treatments for 30 years. When the patient first started visiting our clinic, one of their eyelids could not fully close, the affected eyebrow could not move, and one corner of mouth was drooped and could not lift to smile or make a kissing gesture with the mouth. Additionally, the neck muscles on the affected side tightened up, limiting their range of motion.
After the first month of treatment, we were able to relax the neck muscle to help the patient recover full range of motion in the neck, their eye lid could fully close, and through continued treatments, the patient could make a kissing gesture, and move the eye brow to frown.
This was the first time in 30 years that the patient could make these kinds of facial gestures. The patient is still under treatment to improve their muscle strength and mobility. And we hope with continued treatment, we can help to bring a smile back to the patient’s face.
The key for chronic Bell’s palsy treatment is to help the nerve system connect and control the muscles again.
If you or your loved one had this condition, try to seek help with a credible acupuncturist: it can change your life.
If you are an acupuncturist who wants to learn how to work with Bell’s palsy and help more patients with this condition, contact us for more information.
*Answer for the quick question: the left side (The patient’s left side is drooping down and lacks any facial expression or wrinkles)
