BELL'S PALSY
Bell's palsy is a condition in which the muscles on one side of the face suddenly become weak. The weakness is usually just transient and improves dramatically over a few weeks. Half of the face droops as a result of the weakening. One-sided smiles are common, and the affected eye will not close.
WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF BELL'S PALSY?
Symptoms
Bell's palsy symptoms and signs appear suddenly and include:
● The rapid development of slight weakness to complete paralysis on one side of your face, lasting hours to days.
● Face drooping and trouble producing facial emotions such as blinking or smiling
● Drooling
● On the affected side, pain around the jaw or in or behind the ear
● On the affected side, increased sensitivity to sound
● Headache
● A lack of flavor
● Changes in how much saliva and tears you produce
Bell's palsy can affect the nerves on both sides of your face in rare situations.
WHAT CAUSES BELL'S PALSY?
Although the cause of Bell's palsy is unknown, it is frequently linked to a viral infection. Viruses that cause Bell's palsy include:
● Genital herpes and cold sores (herpes simplex)
● Shingles with chickenpox (herpes zoster)
● Mononucleosis infectious (Epstein-Barr)
● CMV infections
● Respiratory ailments (adenovirus)
● measles in Germany (rubella)
● Mumps (mumps virus) (mumps virus)
● Flu (influenza B)
● The sickness of hand, foot, and mouth (coxsackievirus)
The nerve that regulates facial muscles travels to the face through a tiny bone corridor. Bell's palsy is a condition in which a nerve becomes inflamed and swollen, usually as a result of a viral infection. Tears, saliva, taste, and a tiny bone in the middle of the ear are all affected by the nerve, in addition to facial muscles.
Factors that increase the chances of getting sick are people who:
● Are pregnant, particularly in the third trimester, or in the first week after delivery
● Have you caught a cold or the flu?
● Have high blood pressure or diabetes
● Obesity is a condition in which a person
● Bell's palsy attacks are uncommon.
● When they do reoccur, however, there is generally a familial history of attacks. This indicates that Bell's palsy may be inherited.
COMPLICATIONS:
Bell's palsy is usually gone after a month. The recovery time for a more severe incidence of facial paralysis can vary. The following are examples of complications:
Your face nerve is permanently damaged.
Regrowth of nerve fibers in an irregular pattern. When you're trying to move other muscles, this could cause involuntary contractions of particular muscles (synkinesis). When you grin, your affected eye can close.
The eye that won't close is partially or completely blind. This is caused by severe eyelid dryness and itching (cornea).
Well, the question is are there any benefits of physiotherapy? Does it help in the treatment of Bell's palsy? Yes, it does. The use of physiotherapy is advised. Your physiotherapist will give you a set of facial exercises to strengthen the muscles in your face and increase their range of motion. In a few cases of Bell's palsy, physiotherapy therapies have been effective.
PHYSIOTHERAPY TREATMENT
AT PHYSIO HEALTH PLUS OF BELL'S PALSY?
1.
FACE EXERCISES FOR BELL'S PALSY:
Exercises should be done 4-5 times a day in front of a mirror or as directed by your Physiotherapist to help develop the various muscles of the face. The mirror will also assist you to avoid overcompensating on the good side by moving exaggeratedly. Facial workouts keep your brain trained in the electrical impulses required to regulate the many muscles in your face. As you recover from Bell's Palsy and the paralysis fades, this will assist you to return to using your face muscles.
The therapist will measure the following facial movements during the initial assessment:
● Mouth and jaw movements
● Ability to pucker lips by brow movement
● Lips can be raised or lowered.
● The lips are closed.
● Movements of the eyes
● Smiling and rubbing the cheeks
● Sucking the inside of the cheek between the teeth
● Frowning
● Various facial expressions
● Wrinkled forehead
1. Relax in front of the mirror.
2. Raise your brows gently.
3. Frown with your brows drawn together.
4. Make your nose wrinkle.
5. Gently move the corners of your mouth outwards.
6. Raise one of the corners of your mouth.
7. Inflate your cheeks with air.
8. Bring your lips forward and together.
Facial exercise- to help
in closing eyes:
1. Look below.
2. To hold the eye closed, gently lay the back of your index finger on the eyelid.
3. Stretch the brow up with the opposing hand, working along the brow line. This will help to relax the eyelid and prevent it from stiffening.
4. Try to close your eyes as much as possible.
5. With your fingers, gently press the eyelids together.
2.
ELECTRICAL STIMULATION:
Electrical stimulation is a different type of physiotherapy treatment. Electrical stimulation, unlike facial workouts, must be done by a therapist.
Small amounts of electricity are used to stimulate the muscles in your face with electrical stimulation. Your muscles twitch as though they were being activated by electrical impulses from your brain. This may be the only option to engage these facial muscles during the early stages of Bell's Palsy when your face is mostly paralyzed.
Manual Massage is a type of therapy that involves the use of hands. Perceptual awareness can be enhanced.
The following are examples of facial massage manipulations:
● Effleurage
● Kneading with a finger or a thumb
● Hacking
● Tapping\sStroking
The following are some more therapeutic options:
● To help alleviate pain, apply moist heat to the paralyzed area.
● Use a straw to drink.
● Eat using your preferred side of the mouth.
Massage treatments for Bell's palsy usually concentrate on many parts of the face, including:
●
Lower facial muscles: Mouth
exercises frequently ask the patient to grab the center of the lips with their
thumb and index finger, then press the lips toward the face and smile. This
helps a patient restore the ability to naturally smile, frown, and create other
facial expressions by strengthening the lower facial muscles.
● Forehead: Massage of the top face can help a Bell's palsy patient lessen muscle weakness in the forehead.
● Cheeks: Use your fingertips to make a circular motion around your cheeks to help a Bell's palsy sufferer increase muscle mobility.
Bell's palsy can strike anyone at any age. The actual reason for this is unknown. The swelling and inflammation of the nerve that controls the muscles on one side of the face, according to experts, is the cause. A reaction that occurs after a viral infection could be to blame. Bell's palsy is to be treated as soon as the symptoms arise. Physiotherapy in Gurgaon performed the above-mentioned techniques and facial exercises to help a person gain confidence again and work normally in his/her life.