Bells Palsy, Essay Example

Bell’s palsy is a temporary condition where the facial nerve which is also known as cranial nerve VII paralyses due to either trauma or damage causing difficulty in controlling the facial muscles on the side affected. Facial paralysis can be caused by diseases such as stroke, brain, Lyme and other related diseases. Bell’s palsy therefore occurs when there is no specific cause identified to term it as facial paralysis.

From 1774 to 1842 in Edinburgh, Scotland, there was a surgeon and accomplished artist known as Sir Charles Bell. He is known to have come up with anatomic diagrams which he published. This condition was named after him hence Bell’s palsy. It has been discovered that five out of one hundred thousand persons in a year develop it. Age is seen to be a factor in which the incidence is seen to increase direct proportionally.

Bell’s palsy’s cause is explained using different theories but what most people prefer is the inciting event at the viral that stimulates inflammation and edema in the nerve that leads to nerve damage and infarction. The common viral infections that are commonly connected with Bell’s palsy are influenza, herpes or Epstein-Barr. Overholt (1995) also states that the other dimension to look at it is the entrapment that occurs in the fallopian tube has high probability to be the reason for ischemic injury to the facial nerve.

Mayo Clinic staff (2008) gives more examples of signs and symptoms of Bell’s palsy that includes facial droop and difficulty with facial expressions, sounds seeming louder and pain in front or behind the ear on the affected side, headache, changes in production amount of saliva and tears produced by the body. Symptoms are known to vary from one person to another hence a range in how severe these cases may be. For example, a mild case would experience less serious signs unlike a chronic case. Other symptoms include; weakness, dryness of the eye or mouth, impairment of taste, difficulty in eating or drinking, dizziness and twitching.

There are three things that are used as basis for diagnosis of Bell’s palsy and these are the physical examination findings, results of laboratory tests and history. If looked at physically and carefully, the side that is affected on the face is weak and the eye can hardly be closed completely. In some cases the forehead might be spared and this is not necessarily a sign of Bell’s palsy but a sign of central facial paralysis. When suffering from this disease, there are some normal day to day personal activities that one might not manage to perform for instance; the patient might experience difficulty while whistling and flattening of naso-labial fold. The test made could be either for herpes virus, Lyme disease or any another kind of infection. Other imaging tests that can be used include computed tomography scans, X-rays and magnetic resonance imaging which are used to check inside the body incase there could be other problems.

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (2003) states that Bell’s palsy does not have a standard way of treatment or any cure but the factor that has to be considered during treatment is elimination of the nerve damage. Just as in the symptoms, individuals are seen to be affected differently and that is why treatment is given separately. For a mild case, the symptoms are seen to vanish in two weeks hence no need for medication while it’s otherwise for the chronic cases because besides medication, they might be given therapeutic options. Another effective treatment for Bell’s palsy are steroids, acyclovir which is used to combat viral infections and reduction of swelling and inflammation by use of the steroid prednisone.

Some of the Bell’s palsy symptoms are painful hence the need to use pain killers or analgesics to relieve pain. Examples of these include ibuprofen and aspirin. Bell’s palsy has been seen to have the ability of disrupting the natural way of blinking of the eyelids which definitely makes the eye to be vulnerable to drying and irritation. Eye protection should therefore be one of the most important treatments because it affects a very sensitive part of the body. This can be done through wetting the eyes every time and most importantly at night. Things that could be used to help moisturize the eyes are; eye ointments and patches.

Another type of treatment is use of therapies which could assist in nerve growth such as acupuncture, biofeedback training, relaxation techniques, vitamin therapy and electrical stimulation. The facial nerve might also need stimulation by use of physical therapy and also help in maintaining the tone of the muscle. To prevent permanent shrinkage or shortening of the paralyzed muscles, facial exercises and massage is important before recovery occurs. In case of too much pain, moist heat can be applied to the side of the face that is affected.

In cases where serious harm has been caused, surgery could be recommended but on very rare occasions. To reduce deformities and in correct damages if any, reconstructive surgery may therefore be required.

The forecast of the probable course of a disease for people with Bell’s palsy is very good generally. Recovery is determined by the extent of nerve damage and is therefore gradual in improvement. To wrap up this session on treatment, it has been observed that it is in very rare cases where Bell’s palsy would result in deformity while some individuals would get better with or without treatment in two weeks.

Bell’s palsy will definitely have long lasting effects and as described by Bell’s Palsy Information Site (2008) where they call them residual effects, these are some of the effects: the blink of the eye remains incomplete or infrequent, eyes appear smaller, a smile that is asymmetrical, problems with the sinuses, muscles that are hypertonic, post paralytic hemi facial spasm, pulling up and outward of the mouth, tearing abnormalities, muscles that contract twice, sweating during physical exertion while eating, when exposed to cold, during illness or when tired the muscles stiffen and become more flaccid when having a minor illness or tired.

Recovery is however said to be not consistent among patients. People may have different ways of healing for instance; the eyelids may gain the ability to blink first before the mouth moves while in others it would be vice versa where the mouth gets the energy to move hence heal faster than the eyelids.  Movement may be preceded by twitching but it does not always do that. There could also be pains in the areas starting to recover or not. There could be an odd sense of taste as the sense is regained or nothing at all changes to the taste. Generally, this recovery comes with a pace that suites you. That is to say that recovery can be rapid, slow or very occasional.

The other effects are said to be either as a combination of different aspects or due to one. The nerve acquires some trauma which can be temporary or permanent. If there was extensive damage, other aspects start to come up. The main after- effects is that the facial muscles tend to be hypertonic and this implies that they try to be excessively active, contracting when its time for rest. The signs in this stage are pulling up of the mouth, squinty eye, creases that are deep and a swollen or a sore cheek. Facial muscles are said not to have spindles which are tissues responsible for sensing when a muscle is in a state that is contracted and nerves send the right signal back to the muscle. Physical therapy is therefore the best way to reduce asymmetrical appearance and improve movement even if therapy started many years after the paralysis.

Throughout this article we have been discussing about where Bell’s palsy comes from, how to know you got it, methods of treating it and the possible side effects after having it. What if it made you partially blind after that? What if you struggle to listen since you had it? How do you live with all these scars? How can you live well enough to prevent this from happening? Well, here are some suggestions. If the eye is still sensitive an eye patch can do wonders. This will protect the outer part of the eye from damage.

Have as much rest as you can because the body heals faster with more rests. As embarrassing as it could get especially when people ask some questions, talk with people. Letting them feel and understand what you could be going through makes them to be in a position to help you heal faster by the support they give.

Incase of a painful ear, you can chose to sleep with a hot water bottle to keep pressing against the ear and it relieves pain really fast. Eat, eat and eat good food. This boosts your body system and even helps in the healing process. While eating, one is also advised to take small bites of soft food to make meal times easier. Food should also be chewed gently.

For a paralyzed eye, make up should be avoided. This is so because the normal blinking process which is supposed to clear dust is not functional hence the only way to maintain its cleanliness is through artificial way of using ointment and water drops to keep it moisturized. A pair of tinted lenses would come in handy for the eyes. At this time one should also maintain high standards of hygiene and have a positive attitude because this helps a lot.

Works Cited

Bell’s Palsy Information Site (2008). Retrieved on October 6, 2009 from              http://www.bellspalsy.ws/symptoms.htm

Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research (MFMER) Feb. 2, 2008. Retrieved on October 6, 2009 from  http://www.mayoclinic.com/…/bells-palsy/…/DSECTION=symptoms
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. April 2003 Retrieved on October 6, 2009 from http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/bells/detail_bells.htm

Overholt. S. M. July 20, 1995. Baylor College of Medicine. Retrieved on October 6, 2009 from http://www.bcm.edu/oto/grand/72095.html