Bells Palsy Treatment, Causes & Symptoms

Bells Palsy

Bells Palsy is commonly found among people but there are not many who are aware of it. It affects one side of the face and results in temporary weakness or muscle paralysis. It affects the facial nerve of a persons face. These nerves are present on both sides of the face but it generally affects only one side.

Bells palsy effects only one nerve and hence people who suffer from this experience weakness or stiffness on only one side of their face. It is important for the facial nerve to work properly as it helps in carrying messages to the face from the brains of the person. These messages may include instructions like asking the eyelid to close, wanting the salivary glands to spit or the mouth to frown or smile.

These nerves also helps us to taste food and our bodies to make tears. But when affected by bells palsy, these nerves are not able to pass on the instructions correctly as it swells and gets compressed. This in turn results in temporary weakness or muscle paralysis on one side of the persons face.

Bells Palsy Causes

It is often caused by viral infection. Viral infection like herpes which causes cold sores, influenza or Epstein-Barr are the ones which leads to bells palsy. It is also caused by infectious agents which also leads to Lyme disease. However, it does not necessarily mean that everyone who suffers from this disease will suffer from bells palsy.

There are, however, certain cases wherein a persons immune system responds to the viral infections in such a way that it leads to the nerve inflammation. This leads to the swelling which in turn results in the nerve getting compressed. This results in people especially from the adult age group in being affected by this disease. Though it can affect people from all age group, it is more common among pregnant women and people suffering from diabetes.

Bells Palsy Treatment

It can only be treated with time. For it to improve, it needs the nerve to renew itself and this can happen only with time. It can also be helped by reducing inflammation which can happen by some medicines that can be prescribed by the health care expert.

In certain cases when the affected person is not able to close one eye completely, the doctor then prescribes the person with some protective glasses to protect the cornea and make the person comfortable. The doctors also provides the patient with eye drops or eye patches. Though, initially this infection may seem critical, people suffering from it usually recover from it in the first three months. However, there are few, who are left with some permanent side effects.

Bells Palsy Symptoms

The symptom of it becomes visible only towards the end of the first few weeks of a viral infection. Once you notice the symptoms you will find that the effect of it turns on very quick. It reaches a critical stage and its worst point within the first 48 hours that the symptom is diagnosed.

One of the very common symptom is that when this form of paralysis is about to attack you may feel pain in front or in the back of your ears apart from headache. You may also find one side of your face become stiff or droop. There are some who notice weakness and are not able to move one side of their face at all. Apart from these there are some other symptoms of it like:

• Dryness in one of the eyes
• Not able to close the eye completely
• not able to taste from the the front of the tongue towards the effected side
• variation and change in drooling and saliva
• able to hear louder from one ear as compared to the other