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Idiopathic facial nerve palsy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 June 2007

C. A. J. Prescott
C. A. J. Prescott*
Affiliation:
Cape Town, South Africa
*
Dr. C. A. J. Prescott, Department of Otolaryngology, Medical School, Observatory, 7925, South Africa.
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Summary

Eight hundred and seventy-nine patients with Bell's Palsy were seen over a 10-year period. There was a distinct female preponderance and the peak incidence occurred in the second to fourth decades. There did not appear to be an increased incidence of either hypertension or diabetes but there was a definite increased risk during pregnancy. Half of the patients had an incomplete palsy and they all recovered within a few weeks of onset. Those patients with complete palsy but without evidence of degeneration also all recovered but took longer to do so. If degeneration was evident the chance of recovery was only 50 per cent. Steroids did not appear to influence the outcome of Bell's Palsy.

Type
Main Articles
Information
The Journal of Laryngology & Otology , Volume 102 , Issue 5 , May 1988 , pp. 403 - 407
Copyright
Copyright © JLO (1984) Limited 1988

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