UMEM Educational Pearls

Category: Neurology

Title: Bell Palsy

Keywords: bell palsy, bell's palsy, cranial nerve seven palsy, facial paralysis (PubMed Search)

Posted: 9/14/2011 by Aisha Liferidge, MD (Updated: 3/28/2024)
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  • Bell Palsy is a condition associated with the acute onset of facial paralysis due to palsy of the seventh lower motor neuron (cranial nerve seven).
  • The presence of mastoid pain might be a diagnostic clue, as this symptom often precedes the onset of actual facial paresis.
  • Other associated findings include:  typically unilateral facial muscle paralysis affecting both the upper and lower parts of the face; tear overflow and dry eyes; altered taste; hyperacusis or sound sensitivity; sensation spared; no other cranial nerves involved.
  • It is often associated with viruses such as HIV, Epstein-Barr, and Hepatitis B, but most commonly herpes simplex.
  • If facial paralysis is bilateral, consider Lyme disease as a possible etiology.